Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday (November 17) that a fake narrative can persist only for a limited period of time, while referring to a movie on the Godhra train-burning incident of 2002, when he was the chief minister of Gujarat.
Modi made the comments on X, reacting to a user’s post praising the movie “The Sabarmati Report” for “bringing out the important truth of one of the most shameful events in our recent history”.
The user also made other points, claiming that the “brutal burning of passengers” of the Sabarmati Express train was turned into a political minefield by a vested-interest group, who saw it as a means to tarnish the image of “one leader”, an apparent reference to Modi.
Also read: Sabarmati Express, Godhra carnages: The wounds that remain hard to heal
The prime minister said, “Well said. It is good that this truth is coming out, and that too in a way common people can see it.”
“A fake narrative can persist only for a limited period of time. Eventually, the facts will always come out!” he said while lauding the movie starring Vikrant Massey, Raashii Khanna and Ridhi Dogra, among others.
While the Gujarat police had blamed a Muslim mob for setting fire to the train that was carrying a large number of pilgrims returning from Ayodhya, claims were also made about it being an accident.
More than 50 passengers were killed in the fire, which was followed by communal riots in Gujarat.
Also read: How the wounds of Partition have fuelled communal tension in Godhra since 1947
An enquiry panel constituted by former railway minister Lalu Prasad, a member of the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government at the Centre, had supported the accident theory.
However, many accused chargesheeted for setting the train on fire were convicted by courts, which validated the state police’s assertion.
‘The Sabarmati Report’ is based on the burning of S-6 coach of Sabarmati Express near Godhra station of Gujarat on February 27, 2002, in which 59 Hindu devotees returning from Ayodhya were burnt to death. The incident triggered riots in Gujarat that year. It has been produced by the Ektaa R Kapoor-helmed Balaji Motion Pictures and directed by Dheeraj Sarna.
(With agency inputs)
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