•Ambreen Khan: How far do you hold yourself responsible for killing the spirit of secularism in the country after the 2002 riots?

This is not a question but an accusation. And the accusation is absolutely baseless. We have a vibrant media, an active judiciary and global human rights groups working in the country. If there was even the slightest evidence that I had committed a crime, I would have been hanged long since. The government in Delhi is such that it will prevent me from returning to Ahmedabad, right now, if it finds a pretext. So if you have any evidence that Modi has done something wrong, please bring it forward. Secularism in India was not invented by the Constitution. It’s our age-old tradition.

•Ambreen Khan: Why should a Muslim vote for you?

It is this country’s curse that everything is weighed in votes. The only yardstick should be the welfare of the poor. I’ll give you the example: I have been successful in ensuring 100 per cent enrollment in schools—of both girls and boys. And when I say 100 per cent, I mean 100 per cent; I don’t see people as Hindu or Muslim as you do.

•Soma Das: Is Narendra Modi a disciplined democrat or a lenient dictator?

The fact that you are able to ask me this question and that I am answering it in your office should be proof enough of my being a democrat.

... contd.