JD(U) will rein in Modi, says Irshad Ahmad

The Janata Dal (United) is committed to keeping Narendra Modi, Gujarat chief minister, away from the 2014 prime ministerial race, according to Irshad Ahmad, the party’s national general secretary.
Modi was chief minister during the Gujarat riots that killed hundreds of Muslims in the worst communal riot of post-Independent India.
Speaking at a Jamia Millia Islamia Alumni Association (JMIAA) function here recently, Irshad said that his party, which is a strong ally of the main opposition National Democratic Alliance (NDA), is determined not to compromise on the communal agenda of the BJP.
The event was attended by Khursheed Anwar, the association’s Riyadh president, Murshid Kamal, convener of India Islamic Cultural Center in the Kingdom, and Khursheed Anwar and Syed Aftab Ali Nizami. “During our nine years of rule in Bihar, the BJP could not enforce on us any communal agenda,” said Ahmad. “We partner with them to ensure the development of Bihar, which has been hampered by many year’s of misrule.”
BJP leader L.K. Advani also opposed Modi’s sudden elevation. He was upset over being disregarded by the BJP leadership on crucial decisions in recent days like naming Modi as the party’s campaign incharge for 2014 polls.
Advani also stayed away from a party executive in Goa, for the first time since BJP’s inception in 1980, and resigned from all party posts. He later withdrew the resignations.
The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries host millions of Indians, who closely follow political developments in India and look forward to a peaceful co-existence in the homeland. Saudi Arabia alone is home to over two million Indians.
Irshad said Muslims need proper education, opportunities in employment and other benefits like other fellow Indians.
“Political parties have over the years misled them by announcing Haj subsidies and other emotional issues and used them merely as a vote bank,” he said.
JMIAA presented a memento to Irshad for his efforts toward the upliftment of the community. It also honored Hanif Tarin, a well-known Indian poet for his literary services to the promotion of the Urdu language in the Middle East.