Modi ji didn't do drama, Amit Shah's dig at Rahul Gandhi

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday, while taking a dig at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not "do any drama and waited for the truth", while appearing before the Special Investigation Team in the Gujarat riots case. Shah said that Modi withstood a long battle, "bearing all pain like Lord Shiva" and didn't ask ministers to sit on dharna.Modi ji endured false charges in silence for 19 years, nobody did a dharna, Shah said, taking a swipe at the Congress which has been demonstrating for days over the interrogation of senior party leader Rahul Gandhi in a money laundering case.

Talking to a news agency, the Home Minister further said, "Modi ji set an example, showing how the Constitution can be honoured. He was questioned but nobody staged dharna and workers didn't come to stand in solidarity with him...If those who levelled allegations have a conscience, they should apologise." A tall leader fought this 18-19-year-long fight without saying a word and braving all pain ...I saw him suffering through this very closely. Only a strong-willed person could've taken stand to not say anything as case was sub-judice," Shah said.

Shah spoke at length on the Friday's verdict by the Supreme Court, which gave prime minister Narendra Modi and 60 other officials a clean chit in the 2002 Gujarat riots case. Shah held 'a trio of opposition parties, ideologically motivated elements and some NGOs' responsible for spreading allegations against Modi, who was then the Gujarat chief minister. "They had a strong ecosystem so everyone started believing lies to be truth," Shah said. Home Minister also named Teesta Setalvad - an Indian civil rights activist and journalist, and accused her of spreading lies. “Everyone knows Teesta Setalvad's NGO was doing this. When the UPA Govt came to power at that time, it helped the NGO,” he said.

The Union Home minister denied that there was a delay on the part of the Gujarat government in calling in the army to deal with riots and noted that former Punjab Police chief KPS Gill, a celebrated top cop, had termed the state government's action "prompt and neutral". He also attacked Congress over anti-Sikh riots in 1984, saying that so many Sikhs were killed "but nothing was done for three days".