Modi plays sadhu charmer with Ramdev

HARDWAR: Buoyed by a saffron wave of Hindu religious leaders endorsing him as PM candidate, Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi on Friday defended his record on riots in his state. He also emphasised that Indian tradition talked about the welfare of all and not just Hindus.

Modi addressed a large gathering at Baba Ramdev’s Patanjali Yogapeeth here to unveil the yoga guru’s new gurukul, Acharyakulam, which will seek to synthesise Vedic and modern knowledge.

“After the Gujarat riots of 2002, I had only one mantra: Abhayam (no fear). There used to be recurrent riots in Gujarat. For 12 years now, there hasn’t been a single one,” Modi said. “This is because of our traditional values and culture, which teach us ‘sarve bhavantu sukhinah’ (happiness for all), and not just the happiness and welfare of Hindus. Our culture is unparalleled in the world.” >> CONTINUED ON P11