by LAWRENCE SURENDRA
When Bharatiya Janata Party president Nitin Gadkari was asked by a television channel to comment on the summons issued to Chief Minister Narendra Modi by the Special Investigation Team looking into the Gujarat riots of 2002, he rose in defence of Modi by saying that the minorities in the State had the highest per capita income compared with any other region in the world. Cynics would probably say that the per capita income was bound to rise further if the populations of the minority communities were reduced through periodic pogroms.
Gujarat has been in the news, one could say, for all the wrong reasons. The genocidal events of 2002, which is perceived to have been masterminded by Modi himself, have badly scarred the State’s image. However, Modi and his cheerleaders, including some industry captains, have claimed that Gujarat under his watch has become the foremost “developmentalist State” in the country. Much of Modi’s claims to glory are also intended to bury his absolute disregard for the due process of law and the basic principles enshrined in the Constitution.
For the sake of Gujarat’s development and that of the country, it is necessary to take a closer look at the State to ascertain whether the claims about high rates of growth are borne by facts. A look further back in time rather than the period of Modi’s chief ministership is necessary in order to place the State in the larger context of India’s development objectives.
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