On Godhra anniversary, Modi rides on Mahatma

AHMEDABAD: Lauding Gandhi as an original and far-sighted thinker, Gujarat CM Narendra Modi on Monday claimed he had fulfilled some of the Mahatma’s dreams.
"Gandhiji would have been proud to know that every village in Gujarat has been electrified. When I took over as CM, people used to plead with me to ensure there was no loadshedding at dinner time at least," Modi said at a public event, Gandhi’s Hind Swaraj, in Gujarati, English and Hindi.Sharing the spotlight with him was RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat.
Taking a dig at the Congress, he said, "Some people only talk about Gandhi but we have managed to increase khadi sales by 40% by insisting on khadi gifts at government functions and by by mobilizing our party cadre." Modi said Gandhi once refused to inaugurate a leprosy hospital, saying, "Call me when you have to close it." He said he had the satisfaction of doing this when he became the CM.
Speaking after Modi, Bhagwat said that it was important people read the original works of Gandhi. "These days, people just have shallow knowledge as they read abridged versions," he said.
Political observers said while Modi was taking credit for steps by his predecessor Keshbhai Patel the entire event was another step in appropriation of Gandhi by RSS.