Rising India: Amit Shah drops ‘Frame Modi’ bombshell, questions intentions of top Congress leaders | Full Interview

New Delhi: In a bombshell revelation, Union Home Minister and senior BJP leader Amit Shah disclosed on Wednesday how he was regularly pressured by federal investigators to “frame” then Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh encounter case. In an interview to Network18 Group Editor-in-Chief Rahul Joshi at the News18 Rising India Summit, Shah questioned why UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, then PM Manmohan Singh, then home minister P Chidambaram and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi were silent then.

“All these people were there when this was happening. Chidambaram, Sonia Gandhi, Manmohan Singh, and Rahul Gandhi were all present then… In my entire interrogation, I was told ‘Modi ka naam de do, de do [give us Modi’s name]. But why should I frame him? Today, the same Congress is crying over its fate. They must reflect on their behavior,” Shah said.

From setting the record straight on Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification from Parliament to busting the myth of ‘opposition unity’ ahead of 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Amit Shah shared his views on a host of issues in the candid interview.

Confident that India will scale greater heights under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership, he also expressed confidence that the BJP would win with a bigger mandate in general elections next year.

EDITED EXCERPTS
Amit Shah ji, thank you for coming to the Rising India Summit. I would like to take a few minutes and tell you about why we have gathered here. We have been doing this summit for the last five years. The theme for this year was ‘Rising India: Real Heroes’. We want to shed the spotlight on ordinary people who have accomplished extraordinary feats, many of whom have been felicitated by your government as well through the Padma awards. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also directly interacted with a few of them in his Mann Ki Baat radio programmes.

My first question to you is how you view ‘Rising India’ after nine years in governance and what is the contribution of ‘real heroes’ in this?

In the last nine years, India has proven itself to the world in every field. Be it sports, economy, strengthening democracy, cooperative federalism, or the field of research. The last 10 years have also seen the most being done on national security since Independence. India has excelled in many fields and the credit for that goes to the people who are performing and working at the ground level.

The infrastructure and systems are there but if the real heroes had not stepped up with spirit, achieving this status would not have been possible. I am confident that building on this foundation, we can achieve PM Modi’s dream of India being No.1 in every field when it celebrates 100 years of Independence in 2047.

We last met a few months ago and are now meeting at an interesting time. Elections are approaching and the hottest political topic now is that of Rahul Gandhi. A Surat court convicted him in a defamation case and he was immediately disqualified from the Lok Sabha as well as asked to vacate his official bungalow. Do you think this would result in public sympathy for Rahul Gandhi?

The Congress is trying to create a false narrative, and through your channel, I would like to tell the people what the reality is. The law earlier provided for a three-month period during which a person sentenced to two-year jail term could appeal for a stay. The law does not provide for a court which awarded the sentence to stay the conviction, just the sentence.

In 2013, the Lily Thomas vs Union of India judgment came, in which the Supreme Court ruled that the three-month period will not be allowed. It asked why elected representatives should enjoy this special provision. It said that your election to the legislature stands revoked the moment you are convicted. This was a 2013 verdict during which the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), led by Rahul Gandhi’s mother Sonia Gandhi, was in power.

We haven’t tried to meddle with this judgment, but the Congress-led government wanted to back then, because it wanted to save RJD leader Lalu Pradad Yadav. The Manmohan Singh government brought an ordinance. Rahul Gandhi declared it to be “nonsense” and, in front of the whole country, tore his own government’s ordinance. Since he tore up the ordinance, who in the Congress would dare to try and turn it into a legislation. It was withdrawn. Had the ordinance become a law, may be Rahul Gandhi could have escaped this fate.

Secondly, he hasn’t yet made any appeals to get his conviction stayed. What arrogance is this? You want to remain an MP but won’t appeal before the courts? Where does this arrogance come from? He isn’t the first to get disqualified after being convicted. So far, political leaders who occupied higher positions than him and were more experienced than him were disqualified from Parliament under the same law. I can count three names right now – Lalu Prasad Yadav, who was the first to be disqualified under the law, then Jayalalithaa ji, and Rashid Alvi ji. A total of 17 people, including Rahul Gandhi, have been disqualified. None of the others wore black clothes or created a ruckus because it was Supreme Court judgment and the law of the land.

I want to ask the people of this country, should there be a separate law for just one family? Whatever happens, they blame PM Modi. Now they are also blaming the Lok Sabha Speaker. They should read the law, but I know they won’t understand it. Senior Congress leaders who are Supreme Court lawyers, and are, in fact, still in the party because they are lawyers, don’t explain to them either that it’s not in the hands of the Lok Sabha Speaker. Even if Rahul Gandhi was disqualified two days later, whatever he said as an MP in those two days would have had to be erased from the records because his disqualification was effected the moment he was convicted.

But he [Rahul Gandhi] was also immediately asked to vacate his house [official residence]. You could have given him some days, waited for some time?

What would have been the benefit of that, you tell me?

It would have been symbolic. Now they [Opposition] are calling it vendetta politics.

What is symbolic is for what special favour [should he not have been asked to vacate]? It is the order of the Supreme Court to take immediate steps as soon as the judgment is passed. The judgment had also reached online and why would the Lok Sabha Speaker indulge in contempt of court? Should he do it because [Rahul] is from the Gandhi family? You are asking us questions, why don’t you ask him [Rahul Gandhi] why he didn’t go to court? Shouldn’t you ask him?

I think he wants to stretch this issue.

It doesn’t matter how far he wants to take it. This is a legal situation. There is no vendetta politics because this is the Supreme Court’s judgment which came when your government [Congress] was in power.

Rahul Gandhi is saying he will hold his first rally in Karnataka in Kolar where he had used the profanity for Modi ji. Does he want to get some sympathy from this? Is he trying to make this a Modi vs Rahul election in Karnataka?

If he wants to give his speech from that place itself, how can we stop him? In a democracy, anyone can say anything from any place. If he wants to do Modi vs Rahul, I don’t have any objection. There can be no bigger formula for the BJP to win than this.

Amit ji, your party is trying to give an anti-OBC colour to the profanity Rahul Gandhi used against PM Modi. Why so?

See, he did not use it for Modi ji. You can listen to the whole speech and also play it before my interview so that people can listen to it too. He used the profanity for Modi Samaaj which means everyone in the Teli society. He said why do all thieves have the Modi surname? So he deliberately insulted the OBCs. The party is not making it an issue, it is exactly what Rahul Gandhi said. The contention of the person who went to court against Gandhi’s statement and the summary of the judgment is also the same.

He also said I am no Savarkar that I will apologise. Gandhis don’t apologise.

See, if he doesn’t want to apologise, he shouldn’t have furnished the bail bond too. Mahatma Gandhi had done this once. When the British punished him, he said he won’t furnish the penalty or apologise. Rahul Gandhi should have done the same. My information is that he furnished Rs 15,000 to secure bail. If he doesn’t want to apologise, that is his wish. But such words should not be used for Savarkar. I can say that Veer Savarkar was one of the people who suffered the most torture for this country. In the entire freedom struggle, there is only one person who was given double life imprisonment. For such a brave person, using these kind of words… Rahul Gandhi may not trust us so he can read his grandmother Indira Gandhi’s views about Savarkar. Even his allies — Shiv Sena and Sharad Pawar — are advising him against using such terminology.

Amit ji, so far, Mamata Banerjee and Arvind Kejriwal were not with the Congress. On this issue, they are also now standing with Congress and Rahul Gandhi. In a way, the Opposition has united on this issue.

See, since the day I came to national politics, this question has been asked to me. Tell me something. Let’s assume they come together on any kind of platform. What will they do in Bengal? Will Kejriwal leave his Delhi seat for Rahul Gandhi? What is the meaning of coming together? (Laughs) They are all fighting against each other. They only come together to oppose Narendra Modi. It’s okay, we have no objection.

The entire Opposition is using this to say that democracy is in danger in India. This narrative also finds a place in some sections of western media. Do you feel that this disqualification issue will lend some credence to this narrative?

Why was democracy not in danger when Lalu Prasad was disqualified? Why was it not in peril when NCP’s Mohammad Faizal was disqualified? What about when Jayalalithaa was disqualified? Is there danger only when Gandhi family is involved? Seventeen people have been disqualified. This is the country’s law which you [Rahul Gandhi] could have changed but you tore it calling it ‘nonsense’. Why are you beating your chest now?

Amit ji, let us take a look at some state elections scheduled this year. There are big elections like in Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and this is being seen as a semi-final before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. How do you see the Karnataka elections? What do you feel is the situation there and how many seats will you give to BJP?

I have spent nine days in Karnataka before the elections were announced today. I have visited all the five regions of Karnataka — Mumbai Karnataka, Kalyan Karnataka, Bengaluru, Mysuru. I can tell you with surety that we will be much ahead of the halfway mark. We will form a government with clear majority.

Since 1985, after Ram Krishna Hegde, no other government has been repeated in Karnataka. Still you are so confident?

For 30 years, there was no full majority government in Karnataka. For many years, it was not even repeated in Karnataka. But both these things changed under Modi ji and this time too it shall happen. Don’t worry.

Something weird was witnessed in Karnataka. The chief minister is Bommai but the face is Yediyurappa. The prime minister too held his hand and encouraged him when they met. How do you see this? Under whose face are you fighting the election? Will Bommai come back as chief minister if you win?

Let me clarify one thing first. Yediyurappa ji is our senior leader, he is a member of the central and election committees, and BJP has never questioned his seniority. We are not a party that sidelines those not in power. In our party, whether or not a veteran leader is in power, they are respected. Today, I say this in front of everyone that Yediyurappa ji, with a lot of charisma and attraction, will play the role of the star campaigner in Karnataka. He also clarified this in Karnataka assembly.

So if you win, Bommai will return as chief minister?

That the party will decide. There has been no discussion on this in the party so far. Bommai ji is our chief minister and has done good work. We will definitely come to power again on the plank of development done in Karnataka during the Yediyurappa-Bommai era. People in the state want a double-engine government, a government that can implement Modi ji’s schemes, programmes and vision at the grassroots level.

JDS has issued a list of 150 people while Congress has declared around 125 candidates. You have not announced any names so far. Is this something alarming?

No, no there is nothing alarming in this. We have a procedure. We listen to the zilla, then a discussion happens at the state level which goes to the central parliamentary board that takes a decision. In other places, just five families have to sit together and take a call. In JDS, it is not even five families. Only one family has to sit together and take all decisions (laughs). Hence, for them it is easy to take such decisions. We have to do these discussions in several rounds so it takes time.

People also say JDS is the B-Team of the BJP. How do you view this?

In the previous elections, we were the number one party with maximum seats. We won 104 seats while JDS had 34. Then JDS sat in the lap of the Congress for power and both formed the government. So tell me whose B-Team is the JDS?

So you are not in talks with them?

No, we will fight on every seat for pure and clear majority. Under the guidance of PM Modi, we will get a clear majority. There is no question of talking to anyone.

So even if you fall short, you will not ally with them under any circumstances?

There is no question of an alliance with anyone. We are entering the field with confidence that we will get a full majority.

Before the elections were announced, your party divided the 4 per cent reservation into 2 per cent each for Lingayats and Vokkaligas. The Opposition calls this your strategy for polarisation. What is your view?

I agree that it took some time to take this step. Because reservation on the lines of religion is not in consonance with the Constitution. It is anti-Constitution. The Congress government took this step for polarisation and we have just corrected it.

Let us talk about the 2024 elections. PM Modi gave a big challenge to the Opposition a few days ago. He said a ‘bhrashtachari bachao andolan’ was going on. So do we assume it will be Modi vs the rest in 2024? Will you be able to cross the 300-mark in 2024?

Let me first explain the Modi vs rest concept. I will name four parties — K Chandrasekhar Rao, Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress, Samajwadi Party and Congress. If these four come together with the Modi vs rest formula, and KCR is called to UP for a speech, how will it affect anything in UP? If Mamata Banerjee’s gathering is held in Telangana then what difference will it make? (Laughs) What difference can an Akhilesh Yadav make in Bengal? All these people are fighting each other in their respective states. The ‘unity’ is to increase your TRP. You should thank those people. There is no meaning of this unity. None of them consider each other a neta or are ready to leave even one seat for them. Let us assume TRS gives Mamata Banerjee five seats in Telangana and SP gives her five seats in UP. She also returns the favour in Bengal. That would be actual unity.

What if there is one candidate for one Uttar Pradesh seat, and the joint candidate is of Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party and Congress?

Neither the SP nor the BSP is saying so. They do alliance in Telangana and West Bengal. How are they together? The BSP and SP are not saying anything about the alliance, only your channel is saying so.

The Opposition is saying the central investigative agencies are being used by the government to harass them. Leaders such as Manish Sisodia, Satyendar Jain are in jail, K Kavitha (KCR’s daughter) and Hemant Soren are on the CBI-ED radar. The Opposition is asking whether the CBI and ED offices are locked in BJP-run states?

That is not the case. In 2014 and 2019 elections, the BJP promised the people of the country that they will fight corruption. Our fight is against corruption. I would like to repeat the data revealed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In 2004-14, with this law, the ED, according to the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), recovered Rs 5,000 crore.

But under the Modi government, it took back Rs 1,10,000 crore. Not only 5% of it belongs to politicians, but babus, corrupt businessmen, who broke the laws and did not pay taxes. Should we stop our fight? Do the people of this country want such a law that doesn’t investigate a corrupt politician? We have filed 5,000 cases of corruption. Congress did not even do 500. Are these 5,000 cases against other party workers? No. It’s all in front of people, bureaucrats, businessmen and middlemen.

As far as injustice is considered, who filed a case against Lalu Prasad Yadav? The UPA government did. Who filed the case against Sheikh Abdullah (former CM of Jammu and Kashmir) in which a group of ministers were sent in a big Air India plane to send him to jail? Indira Gandhi did it. These are corruption cases. I want to remind Rahul Gandhi that hundreds of Opposition leaders were sent to jail during the Emergency and there was no provision of bail. Here, now, we have that, you can go to court. I will tell you how the law was misused, I was the victim.

The Congress did not file a corruption case against us. An encounter took place, and I was the home minister of that state, and the CBI registered a case against me and they arrested me. The CBI recorded me, which should still be there if the Congress had not removed it. In 90% of CBI’s questions, the refrain was ‘why are you getting tense? Just take Modi’s name, and we will free you.’ We did not wear black clothes, we did not protest.

An SIT was formed against the CM (Narendra Modi). There was no corruption case. There was a fake riot case filed, which the Supreme Court had dismissed. We did not create a hue and cry. We never wore black clothes and blocked the workings of Parliament. And I will tell you the result, they arrested me, I got bail within 90 days by the High Court, which said there are no evidence against me. I applied for acquittal in a Mumbai court, the case was taken out of Gujarat, where it said the CBI filed the case on the grounds of political vendetta that’s why we quash all charges against Amit Shah. We didn’t create a scene.

There were the same people; P Chidambaram was present, Sonia Gandhi was overseeing the UPA, Manmohan Singh was there, Rahul Gandhi was the MP. What has happened now? We have filed case against you (Congress) on corruption and indecent speech. We didn’t file any fake case. Arvind Kejriwal keeps crying every day. Well! They are all innocent. For how long has Jain Sahab (Satyendra) been in jail? It has been one and half years. Why does he not get bail? What about Manish Sisodia? There are courts in this country.

Everybody should take their cases in court. I just want to say to Congress about misusing law, if you point one finger, four fingers will be raised against you. The people of this country have seen everything during your rule (Congress). But we never wore black turbans, dhoti and protested on roads. It’s a case, you should have faith in law. I never spoke about these things, but you asked me so I said so. All through my interrogation, they kept saying ‘take Modi’s name’.

Why are they scared of Modi, why do they want to trap him? They didn’t ask me anything else. And because of my case, so many innocent police officers were put behind bars. And the same Congress, P Chidambaram, Kapil Sibal and Abhishek Manu Singhvi are claiming. They should do self-introspection and return all the money earned from corruption to the court and it may forgive them.

One Opposition leader has alleged that if a corrupt leader joins the BJP, then the central investigative agency drops the case against him.

This is baseless. There are courts in this country. If your case is concrete, then take it to the court, which will direct the CBI and the ED. Why would the CBI and ED dare to go against the direction of the court? And what does the Congress think that the courts in this country are closed? Go to the court…

Fourteen Opposition parties have filed a petition in the Supreme Court in which they have said the arrests should be based on the guidelines. They have mentioned three guidelines. What do you have to say?

In this country, the guidelines on arrest, bail and remand are based on the five judgments of the Supreme Court. They also know this. But they want to misguide the public but the people don’t get strayed by this.

Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh will go to the polls this year. How do you see your situation in these states? What do you think will happen there?

There is time in the elections of these three states. I have surveyed all three states but Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh a little more. I can tell you that in both the states there is anti-Congress sentiment. And the Congress themselves believe that they will not get the numbers this time in Rajasthan.

In Madhya Pradesh, Kamal Nath gave you a tough fight the last time, and you had to change the government. This year too, Nath is contesting the polls from Congress. Do you think you will win this time?

We will definitely win this time. Yes, there were some problems last time because caste-based protests were organised under which the elections were conducted. They also did the same thing in Gujarat in the last elections. So, it is natural that it would have an impact on elections. But the public has understood that it was propaganda. I went to the state, and I feel, the atmosphere is good.

Who will be your contestant against Bhupesh Baghel in Chhattisgarh?

There will be some candidate for a seat but we have not decided who the leader will be. Once it’s decided, we will let you know.

How do you see your situation in Rajasthan? Ashok Gehlot deceived his own Congress high command. How do you see your fight against him? Will Vasundhara Raje be BJP’s CM face?

We haven’t taken any decision on Rajasthan yet. But the way Gehlot has run the state, people definitely want to change the government. Therefore, the Congress high command wants to make him the state president and clear the path but he didn’t leave. It’s their internal matter.

Are you in talks with Sachin Pilot like the last time?

I think amongst all three states, we will get the maximum majority in Rajasthan.

You got the state of Maharashtra through your masterstroke. People think that you may have gained in the short-term but in the long-term the Shiv Sena workers are still with them, sympathy for Uddhav Thackeray is still a factor. What will be the impact of this on the 2024 elections?

What you are saying is totally opposite. The BJP and Shiv Sena fought the Maharashtra elections together under the leadership of Devendra Fadnavis. Then, after losing the polls, the Congress and NCP said they will make Uddhav Thackeray the chief minister. When Thackeray started interacting with public, the ideological difference of opinion stared surfacing because the Shiv Sena has been practising Hindutva politics for years, while the Congress-NCP politics was different.

Therefore, people started questioning the Shiv Sena loyalists and representatives. The ones who quit the Shiv Sena was not because of us, it was due to the pressure of the public. This only concluded that the people wanted the Shiv Sena and BJP government to be together. Now, the real Shiv Sena is with us, we have formed the government together, and will fight the elections together.

Some say that had BJP fought last Maharashtra elections alone, without Shiv Sena, it could have got the majority…

Even I accept that but Shiv Sena is one of our oldest allies, and hence we trusted them.

But my question is that now you are with the Eknath Shinde camp, so is a merger possible?

Eknath Shinde’s camp is the real Shiv Sena, and it has even got the Election Commission’s stamp. They have got the ‘bow and arrow’ symbol too. Bharatiya Janata Party and Shiv Sena will fight elections together. No question of a merger arises. There is no such proposal. We are not even thinking about it.

So how will seats be divided in 2024?

We’ll sit together and sort these things out. And if need be, we’ll call you as well.

On the political situation that arose in Maharashtra, the Supreme Court had commented that there was no need for the governor to call a floor test amid feud between MLAs of two Shiv Sena groups. What do you have to say on this?

See, this wasn’t a judgment. This was a reaction by a bench of judges after hearing the narrative of the party present before it. I believe that Shiv Sena’s lawyers also responded well to the top court’s comments, by presenting all the facts. We should not speculate much till the final judgment is out. And post the verdict, whatever the SC decides everyone will have to follow as it is the top court of the country. But judges comment, question, observe many things during a hearing, and one cannot take that as ‘judgment’.

Amit ji, let’s talk about 2024 polls. You had got the majority and in most states they saturation seats. There were many seats in Uttar Pradesh…

My memory is too sharp. In the beginning of 2019, this question on saturation seats was the first thing you asked me. And that year itself our seats increased. I would like to reiterate that Narendra Modi will become the prime minister yet again and BJP will sweep through India.

From where will you get these extra seats? In which states is BJP likely to gain?

It will be from many states. Last time I used to say that we’ll increase our seats in Bengal. No one used to believe me. But it did increase. It increased in Odisha and Telangana as well. Our party works at the grassroots levels, and PM Modi’s aura is widespread — from a remote village in a corner till Delhi.

How do you see south? Modi ji‘s aura is there in Tamil Nadu and Kerala but how will it convert in seats?

Our unit there was weak and we have put in a lot of effort and hard work to improve our hold in the region. We have reached many villages and booths. And where we are weak, we have our allies.

So will the tie-up with AIADMK continue?

Yes. Even now we have ties with them.

Amit ji, now let’s talk about issues that are directly connected to your ministry. How do you see the situation in Punjab? You met chief minister Bhagwant Mann in March and then police tried to arrest Amritpal two weeks later but he managed to escape. How did this happen? When there was so much coordination between the Centre and the state, how did Amritpal still manage to flee?

I cannot make everything public here. But I tell you that I meet Punjab CM every three months. In fact, I meet chief ministers of all the states every three months. This is nothing new, and one cannot link these meetings with any incident. And as far as BJP’s Narendra Modi is concerned, his team stands by all states like a pillar when it comes to any law and order situation because it is a matter of our country’s security and politics cannot come in between. And whatever steps the Punjab government wants to take, the Centre is with them.

So who do you think is at fault?

Don’t give speculations so early on whose fault it was or where did someone falter. Many have been arrested. Many have been slapped with NSA, and many have been sent to jail and several cases have been registered too. Arms and ammunition too have been recovered in huge quantity. I believe that strict action was taken.

And you believe that Amritpal Singh will be arrested soon?

Nothing happens with my beliefs. Police and agencies are deployed and they will do their work. But I do believe that all these things should not be a part of a public interview. These are sensitive issues and should be tackled accordingly.

We also saw violent protests outside Indian Embassy in UK in wake of the protests in Punjab. There were also protests in Vancouver, Belgium and San Francisco. How do you see this?

An Indian embassy, in whichever part of the world, is a part of our country. And an attack in its premises is an attack on India. We have registered an FIR against it in Delhi. And we have also initiated action against those who were involved in the attack.

What action will you take? Will OCI card, etc be cancelled?

They have been slapped with UAPA. We have also sought recordings. Police will take action accordingly.

Who do you think is behind this Khalistani movement?

It has been going on since 90s. It’s difficult to pin-point and say who’s behind it. But majority of Sikh residents, be it in Punjab or across India, strongly believe that they should be with India. And they have contributed in India’s development with utmost dedication, especially in security forces. The kind of contribution our Sikh brothers have made in India’s security is unmatched.

Recently we have seen a clash between the Centre and the judiciary. Union minister Kiren Rijiju and vice president Jagdeep Dhankar have been questioning the process to appoint judges.

There is no clash. They are all giving their opinion. Please don’t give it an angle of clash. The Narendra Modi government cannot clash with the judiciary, neither any government should do it. Our Constitution has clearly mentioned separate roles for the two. All should stay in their realm and function, and this is what is being followed too.

National Judicial Appointments Commission Bill (NJAC) was passed in Parliament yet the judiciary termed it ‘unconstitutional’. A minister in your government has also continuously been questioning it. That is why it seems like a ‘judiciary vs executive’.

You didn’t hear what our minister said. It’s not like we changed what was in the judgment. In that same judgment, there is a paragraph that states the government should make a new SOP for judges’ appointment and submit it before the Supreme Court, and then the top court will study it and decide.

Hence, the Centre made an SOP and submitted it and it has been pending there. Kiren Rijiju only asked to expedite it and brainstorm over it at the earliest. I don’t think there is anything to “clash” over it.

The ‘clash’ because we saw it in committee over Adani row, the Supreme Court made report on judges’ IB report public too. It also diluted government’s power in election commission. Still you don’t think there’s a clash?

The judgment on election commission says that till the government doesn’t come up with a law, the court has made a stop-gap arrangement. Supreme Court hasn’t said that the arrangement they’ve made is the law. The government has been asked to do it and we’ll work on it and get it passed in Parliament.

There’s another issue that you’ve worked extensively on, and it is drugs. When will the dream of a drug-free India be fulfilled?

This is an issue that cannot have a deadline. We can’t put a date to when will it end.

It’s a fight that will go on for long. The only thing that can be done is changing the approach. During Modi’s regime, we got an encode in 2020, and there’s a four-level arrangement. Border security, health and pharmaceutical department, home ministry, police, jail, finance department, all get together to fight against it. This is a part of that encode. We seized drugs worth Rs 22,000 crore in last nine years. And I burn these drugs myself every three months.

Also, earlier we used to just arrest a person found with drugs. Now the approach has changed. We see from where has he got, how did he get it, etc. It’s called a top-to-bottom and bottom-to-top approach. I strongly believe that youths should join in our fight as drugs have huge implication, including terror funding.

For us, children addicted to drugs are victims and those who smuggle are criminals. We have a separate approach for both.

You are fighting against Naxalism. You recently visited Chhattisgarh’s Sukma and many areas there. How big of a problem do you think it is and how are you tackling it?

There was a time when a Red corridor from Kathmandu to Tirupati used to be discussed. It included 12 states in the country; now the number of states in that has reduced drastically. Today, Chhattisgarh, some districts of Maharashtra, one district in MP, one district each in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, and Odisha, Bihar, Jharkhand and Bengal are completely free.

Under the leadership of PM Modi, there has been a 76% reduction in Left-Wing Extremism in the country. While we’ve dealt with their cadres strictly, we have also made arrangements for those willing to join the mainstream.

Economy has been hit across the globe. Most countries are going through a rough patch. India is still a bright spot whose economy is stable. However, the Opposition targets the government on the issues of inflation and unemployment…

Speaking of inflation, India is still in a far better position compared to England, France, Germany and even the US after the Covid-19 period. But I can say that PM Modi has not let inflation affect food prices in the country.

However, the global economy is intertwined in such a manner that no country can be unaffected if any change takes place at the global level. It won’t be right to say that the slowdown and inflation will not affect us. However, Bharatiya Janata Party’s Narendra Modi government has done the job of reducing the impact of this global effect.

I can say today that India has been the fastest-growing economy in both years of the pandemic.

After Atal Bihari Vajpayee ji, Manmohan ji came and did a wonderful job by not letting the Indian economy slip to the 12th position from 11th. India stood at 11th position. Then came Modi ji, who took India’s economy from the 11th position to the 5th. I believe this is a very big achievement.

Today, India has become a production hub. Be it the field of green hydrogen, space, drones, empowering startups, or creating a friendly environment for the youth so that they can compete on a global platform. That platform, Modi ji has successfully provided.

I always attempt to ask you some light questions, but I never get an answer to those. Before you leave, tell us how you relax; do you ever take leaves?

I am relaxing as I speak to you. Do whatever your mind tells you, do things according to your goals and you won’t ever feel tired. If you do things against your mind, ideology and belief, then you will get tired. You won’t be tired if you keep working according to your beliefs without making compromises. This is why I never get tired.

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