Indian democracy !
Narendra Modi
Gujarat violence
Main article: 2002 Gujarat violence
On 27 February 2002, a train burning in the town of Godhra lead to 59 deaths, most of them Hindu pilgrims and religious workers returning from the holy city of Ayodhya.[36] Local Muslim leaders have been found guilty of burning the train [37] Riots broke out in the state as the act was caused by Muslims[37] in which 790 Muslims and 254 Hindus were ultimately killed.[38] The Modi administration was accused of insufficient action over the riots and suspected of encouraging them.[28] However, Narendra Modi had promptly issued shoot at sight orders and called for Army to prevent the riots from worsening, but given the massive reaction to Godhra carnage, the combined strength of Indian army and State Police too proved insufficient, as confirmed by the media reports on March 1st.[39] Modi administration promptly imposed an indefinite curfew in 26 sensitive cities to ensure that riots do not spread, as reported by The Hindu on March 1st.[40] Years later, a sting operation by an investigative journalist showed videos of many prominent Hindu leaders and politicians boasting of their involvement in the killings and the complicity of Narenda Modi in the riots.[41] However there were several inaccuracies in the statements that questioned the sting operation. Babu Bajrani and Suresh Richard in the statements said that Narendra Modi visited Naroda Patiya one day after the massacre to thank them while official record showed that Naredra Modi didn't visit Naroda Patiya. VHP activist, Ramesh Dave told Tehelka reporter that S.K.Gadhvi, one of the divisional superintendents of Police killed five Muslims in Dariapur area as promised to him. But the official records show that Gadhvi was only posted in Dariapur one month after the riots. During his tenure no such incident took place in Dariapur.[42] On 29 August 2012, an Indian court found a democratically elected legislature guilty of the crime.[dubious ][43] On the eve of this decision, Modi refused to apologize and rejected renewed calls for his resignation.[44]
As an aftermath of the riots, there were calls for Modi to resign from his position as chief minister of Gujarat. The opposition parties stalled the national parliament over the issue. Even Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and Telugu Desam Party (TDP), allies of the BJP, asked for Modi's resignation.[45][46] Modi submitted his resignation to the Governor and recommended the dissolution of the 10th Gujarat Legislative Assembly.[47][48] In the following state re-elections the BJP, led by Modi, won 127 seats in the 182-member assembly.
In April 2009, the Supreme Court of India appointed a special team of investigators to look into the role Modi had played in the alleged anti-Muslim conspiracy.[28] The team was appointed in response to the complaint of Zakia Jafri, the widow of ex-Congress MP Ehsan Jafri, who was murdered in the riots.[49] In December 2010, a Supreme Court-appointed Special Investigation Team (SIT) in its report to the Supreme Court seeking answers pertaining to the Ehsan Jafri case, submitted that they had found no evidence against Narendra Modi.[50]
However in February 2011, the Times of India reported that a confidential report from the SIT indicted Modi on several counts of alleged complicity in the Gujarat riots of 2002.[51] Most other sources have noted that the SIT report does not indict Modi for the riots due to lack of evidence.[52][53] The Indian Express too said the report did not find any Modi involvement in the violence, though it did accuse him of watering down the seriousness of the situation.[54] According to the Hindu, the report not only found that Modi tried to water down the seriousness of the situation, but Modi also implicitly justified the killings of Muslims, and failed to condemn the attacks on them.[55] The Bharatiya Janata Party demanded an investigation into the publication of the report, claiming the leak was politically motivated.[56]
The apex court refused to pass any order on the case and referred it to the Ahmedabad magistrate for a decision.[57] In April 2012, a Special Investigation Team absolved Modi of any involvement in the Gulberg massacre, arguably the worst episode of the riots.[58] On 7 May 2012, the Supreme Court-appointed amicus curiae, Raju Ramachandran observed that Modi can be prosecuted under sections 153 A (1) (a) & (b), 153 B (1), 166 and 505 (2) of the Indian Penal Code for promoting enmity among different groups during the 2002 Gujarat riots. His main contention was that the evidence be judged by a court of law and not the SIT, the SIT was required to investigate and not judge[59] However the amicus report has been criticised by the Special Investigation Team for relying heavily on the testimony of Sanjiv Bhatt.[60] In an interview on 26 July 2012 to Shahid Siddiqui, editor of an Urdu Weekly, Nai Duniya and an MP of Samajwadi Party told that if he is found guilty of collusion in the 2002 riots, should be hanged, other-wise insinuations against him should cease.[61]
[edit]2007 elections
Modi made a speech at Mangrol in which he justified the encounter of Sohrabuddin Sheikh, during the election campaign in response to Sonia Gandhi's speech calling him a "merchant of death",[62] and referred to Sohrabuddin's killing. For this speech the Election Commission of India, a constitutional body governing election proceedings in India, cautioned Modi as it considered it as indulging in an activity which may aggravate existing differences between different communities.[63] Modi won the election and continued his post as the Chief Minister Of Gujarat, he won with majority of votes of 122 seats out of 182 total assembly seats.[64]
Conflicts with Governor Kamla Beniwal
On 25 August 2011 Gujarat Governor Kamla Beniwal appointed Justice R A Mehta to the post of Lokyukta of Gujarat, a critical anti-corruption post that had been lying vacant since 2003. Justice R A Mehta was recommended for the post by the Chief Justice of the Gujarat High Court in June. Governor Beniwal had made this decision without consulting and getting the approval of the chief minister and his council of ministers.[65]
This marked the beginning of a strained relationship between Modi and the Governor. On 25 September 2011, Narendra Modi accused the Governor of running a parallel government in the state supported by the Congress party. He demanded that she be recalled back.[66] He also later accused her of delaying the progress of bills by not passing them.
The decision of the governor in the appointment of R A Mehta was challenged in the high court by the Modi government. The two member high court bench gave a split verdict on 10 October 2011. Later, a third member upheld the governor's decision in January 2012.[67]
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