Narendra Modi's words sound hollow
URL - http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2013/12/modi-says-he-was-shaken-to-core-by.html
Mr. Narendra Modi, the
chief minister of Gujarat has been compared for his focus on development of his
state, while tearing the social fabric of Gujarat and reducing minorities to
second class citizens. The Gujarat Massacred killed nearly 1000 people and
displaced 20,000 without any rehabilitation or compensation. The lower court sided
with the recommendations of a special investigative team on December 26, 2013. Mr. Modi sounds hollow.
December
26, 2013. The district court in Ahmadabad, Gujarat validated the recommendations of the special investigation team and dismissed the
charges against Mr. Narendra Modi's involvement in the Gujarat massacre
under his leadership in 2002.
Immediately after the verdict,
Mr. Modi tweeted, "Satyameva Jayate" - that truth triumphs at the end.
The words sounded hollow.
Referring to the 2001 Earthquake, he wrote on his blog "Hundreds of lives
were lost. Lakhs were rendered homeless. Entire livelihoods were destroyed. In
such traumatic times of unimaginable suffering, I was given the responsibility
to soothe and rebuild. And we had whole heartedly plunged ourselves into the
challenge at hand."
Of course the hard core supporters will lap it up, but this should have
happened as an initiative and not as a reaction.
Mr. Modi, did you not have the responsibility to soothe and restore the
lives of the riot victims, at least with some heart if not wholeheartedly? If
you had cared for them, the world would have been with you and you did not have
to play these games.
However, you still have the time to show if you really have a pure heart
that does not discriminate any one. Mr. Modi said, "I pray to God that no
bitterness seeps into my heart". Please do the praischit, (repentance) prayers
alone won't cut it, and they are merely words.
Should we buy the following statement, "However, it was from these very
built up emotions that I had appealed to the people of Gujarat on the day of the
Godhra train burning itself; fervently urging for peace and restraint to ensure
lives of innocents were not put at risk."
Should we buy this statement from Rahul Gandhi, your opponent if he
delivers this, "However, I was totally opposed to corruption in the UPA
government, I was shaken to the core. 'Grief', 'Sadness', 'Misery', 'Pain',
'Anguish', 'Agony' with the way things are happening, I am here to change it and
put India back on prosperity that reaches every Indian."
After twelve years and countless investigations and interviews, he
comes up with this to build momentum and position himself as a good guy, "I was
shaken to the core. 'Grief', 'Sadness', 'Misery', 'Pain', 'Anguish', 'Agony' -
mere words could not capture the absolute emptiness one felt on witnessing such
inhumanity." Really? It took twelve years for you to share that on an
opportunistic time?
He continues, "On one side was the pain of the victims of the
earthquake, and on the other the pain of the victims of the riots. In decisively
confronting this great turmoil, I had to single-mindedly focus all the strength
given to me by the almighty, on the task of peace, justice and rehabilitation;
burying the pain and agony I was personally wracked with."
Mr. Modi, you still have the time to take action, here are the
suggestions.
1.
Restore the lives of refugees uprooted in the riots, find them minimum
housing and a path to earn a livelihood. Let them be accommodated amidst
all others with caring attitudes, in the long run we have to build
de-segregated societies for the good of all.
2. Inclusive
governance, to include Muslims on the internal advisory of the Chief
Minister to make security decisions on a voluntary basis with nothing to
gain.
3. Justice to the families of the ones who have lost their lives, both Hindu and Muslim without discrimination.
4.
Find the truth about burning of 59 passengers in the train in the most
transparent way - to bring closure to doubts on both sides or
acknowledge the findings and live with it.
5. Punishment for
anti-Muslim and anti-Christian attitudes in the state machinery, just
like the strong anti-corruption rules instituted by the Chief Minister.
6.
Meet with local Muslim, Dalit, Sikh, and Christian leadership on a
regular basis, not to appease them, but to hear them out and prevent
injustice to them.
7. Earn the goodwill of the people affected by restoring their lives and seeking forgiveness from them.
Remember, Muslims and other minorities are not looking for favors or
handouts, but just fair treatment, and an opportunity to be productive
citizens. If Mr. Modi can demonstrate that he is a good human being, and put in
to practice the above seven points for the next five years, he would earn the
goodwill of the people and could hope to be the Prime Minister of India for
several terms.
Jai Hind
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Mike Ghouse is a speaker, thinker and a
writer
on pluralism, politics, peace, Islam, Israel, India, interfaith, and cohesion at work
place. He is committed to building a Cohesive America and offers
pluralistic solutions on issues of the day at www.TheGhousediary.com. He believes in
Standing up for others and a
book with the same title is coming up. Mike has a strong presence on national
and local TV, Radio and Print Media. He is a frequent guest on Sean Hannity show on
Fox TV, and a commentator on national radio networks, he contributes weekly to
the Texas Faith Column at Dallas Morning News; fortnightly
at Huffington post; and
several other periodicals across the world. His personal site www.MikeGhouse.net indexes all his work
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