Ahmedabad: On his 61st birthday today, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi will begin a fast that's scheduled to last 72 hours.
The agenda, he declared in an open letter earlier this week, is to "strengthen Gujarat's environment of peace, unity and harmony." Mr Modi also waxed eloquent about what he describes as "the unhealthy environment created by the unfounded and false allegations made against me and Government of Gujarat, after 2002 riots."
Mr Modi's fast will start in an air-conditioned exhibition hall at the Gujarat University in Ahmedabad. The room is usually rented for five lakhs a day - an indicator that its facilities are more than basic. It can accommodate 10,000 people; among them will be senior BJP leaders LK Advani and Arun Jaitley, who have both confirmed their attendance. That's at least three prime ministerial hopefuls in one room, some might say.
The three-day sadbhavana fast is poised to be a grand affair with the BJP state government making all arrangements, including five-tier security, for the event that will see not only the BJP top brass attending, but also AIADMK leaders and Akali Dal chief Prakash Singh Badal.
Meanwhile, Mr Modi, in a late evening statement on Friday, expressed gratitude to all those who had pointed out his "genuine mistakes" during the past 10 years. An official press release stated that the chief minister has said that "India and Gujarat have realized that casteism and communal fanaticism does not serve anybody. Gujarat has risen over the distortions in society and national life to march on to the path of progress, peace, unity, harmony and brotherhood."
It won't be slim pickings for those who oppose Mr Modi. The Congress' Shankarsinh Vaghela has announced his own hunger strike. And in a bizarre case of my-fast-is-bigger-than-yours, he has promised, "We will begin one hour before he does and end the fast two hours after he does." Mr Vaghela, who left the BJP 15 years ago, says his mission is to challenge the Chief Minister's interpretation of a recent Supreme Court verdict on the 2002 riots.
Earlier this week, the court refused to take a stand on whether there's enough evidence to merit Mr Modi's trial for complicity in the riots that killed 1200 people, most of them Muslims. The Supreme Court said all evidence and reports collected on the matter will be sent to a trial court in Gujarat. The BJP and Mr Modi said this proves that the catalogue of grievances against Mr Modi for failing to control the rioters is unfounded. Those who studied the riots and interviewed witnesses on behalf of the Supreme Court have stressed that the latest verdict is not a clean chit.
The Supreme Court's order, say sources, has Mr Modi convinced that he has a shot at being the BJP's Prime Ministerial candidate for the next general election in 2014. And the fast is the first step in a makeover that will focus on his secularism.
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