KPS Gill,former security adviser to Modi,gives him clean chit on riots

Failure of police,not Modi,ex-IPS officer says in new book.

Former IPS officer KPS Gill,who was security adviser to Narendra Modi in 2002,reckoned that the Gujarat riots took place as the Gujarat Police was divided on communal lines,says a new book.

From my first-hand experience of Gujarat situation,I can say with conviction that Gujarat riots were not the failure of Mr Narendra Modi; instead it was the failure of Gujarat cops as well as the intentions of the neighbouring states which had then denied forces to Gujarat when the riots started, the book quotes Gill as saying.

KPS Gill The Paramount Cop is the police officers biography,written by Rahul Chandan,an assistant general manager at Food Corporation of India.

I found the police force unequal to the challenge; majority of the policemen themselves had become communal in their duty as they were enraged with the killings of so many kar sevaks fellow Hindus at the hands of Muslims in Godhra, the book quotes Gill as saying.

Similar was the condition of the civil administration. Since Mr Modi had become the CM only a few months back,the administration and the police force were not in his proper grip and it takes time to develop such a grip8230; I found that in the previous two months Mr Modi had made all efforts to stop riots,he had called in the Army with swiftness,he sought forces from the neighbouring states and the Centre.

Gill,who was present at the launch of the book on Thursday,said that his assessment of Modis role during the riots had caused discord in his family,but he had only spoken the truth.

For the past few days,I have had serious discord with my family over what I have said about Mr Modi in this book. But I have always lived by the truth, Gill said.

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Asked if he was absolving Modi of all blame,Gill said,Whenever there is a law and order situation,the political leadership cannot do much,the response has to come from the police.

Gill says in the book,The so called dharm-nirapeksh secular parties were taking advantage of the fact that Mr Modi follows the principles of Hindutva. They were portraying Hindutva as something anti non-Hindu religions. My understanding was that Mr Modis practising of principles of Hindutva in no way meant that he would allow killing people of other religions8230; Today Gujarat is one of the best administered states not only for Hindus but for all religions and all castes. The credit for this goes to only and only Mr Modi.

The book carries an endorsement from Modi: Without cops like KPS Gill there can be no democracies,no political leaders and no kings.