False narrative over 2002 Gujarat riots, courts declared us innocent: PM Modi

The prime minister said the most important thing was that Gujarat has not seen any riots since 2002. "Gujarat remains completely peaceful," Modi claimed.

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi alleged the discourse around the 2002 post-Godhra riots in Gujarat was an attempt to create a “false narrative” and his political opponents in power at the Centre wanted him to be “punished”, but the courts cleared his name.

In a podcast with Lex Fridman, Modi said the perception that the 2002 riots were the biggest riots ever in Gujarat was an “attempt to push misinformation.”

“If you review the data from before 2002, you will see that Gujarat faced frequent riots. Curfews were constantly being imposed somewhere. Communal violence would erupt over trivial issues such as kite flying contests or even bicycle collisions,” Modi said.

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Modi said the Godhra train burning incident took place barely three days after he was elected as a legislator of the Gujarat Assembly.

Modi, who was the Gujarat chief minister at that time, said the big incident at Godhra was the sparking point and violence took place. He said that a “fake narrative was spread regarding the Godhra case.”

“But, the courts investigated the matter thoroughly and found us completely innocent. Those who were truly responsible faced justice from the courts,” he claimed.

The prime minister said the most important thing was that Gujarat, which used to witness violence almost every year, has not seen riots since 2002. “Gujarat remains completely peaceful,” Modi claimed.

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The prime minister feels his approach has always been to avoid vote bank politics. “Our mantra has been, sabka saath sabka vikas aur sabka prayas. We have moved away from the politics of appeasement practised by our predecessors to the politics of aspiration,” Modi said during his over three-hour interaction.