Modi ends fast on upbeat note, but divisions remain

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Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Monday evening ended a three-day fast asserting that he was the first leader in six decades of independent India to deliver genuine good governance.

Addressing thousands at the Gujarat University hall here, Modi repeatedly harped on the widely acclaimed economic progress Gujarat has made since he became chief minister a decade ago.

In the process, but without taking anyone's name, he insisted that no other government in India had achieved what he had by transforming Gujarat into an economic powerhouse.

Modi gave no credit to his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) or any of his colleagues for the Gujarat success story that has been noted both in India and abroad, including by the World Bank.

But even as the fast for promoting amity ended, it was clear that the purpose had not been achieved. Both BJP critics and leading Muslim leaders accused Modi of trying to cover up his role in the 2002 riots of Gujarat.

Text: IANS

Images: PTI

Image: Bhaiyyu Maharaj and other religious leaders offer lemon juice to Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi to break his three-day fast in Ahmedabad on Monday.