Khurshid questions 2002 riots 'clean chit' to Modi

Union minister Salman Khurshid has kicked up another political row by questioning the “clean chit” given to BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi by a lower court in 2002 Gujarat riots.

Union minister Salman Khurshid has kicked up another political row by questioning the “clean chit” given to BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi by a lower court in 2002 Gujarat riots.

“A magistrate's court has not summoned him... It is true... It’s like a nursery student getting a good grade and thinking that he has become a doctor and goes around claiming to be a PhD. How can that happen?” Khurshid said on Tuesday.

Khurshid had last month called Modi “impotent”. Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi later disapproved of the Union minister’s language. The foreign minister then clarified his statement, insisting he did not cross a line as he meant “administrative incompetence”.

Speaking about the controversy over a claim that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange endorsed Modi as “incorruptible”, he said, “I don't understand that someone who is so confident… why does he need to go around seeking support to establish his dominance. I am surprised.” When there is a rebuttal, they (BJP) say they don't need a certificate from WikiLeaks, he added.

BJP spokesperson Prakash Javadekar countered Khurshid’s charge, saying Muslims and all other sections of the society left the riots behind in Gujarat.

"In desperation and frustration, Congress' Salman Khurshid is using such language which we condemn," he said on Wednesday. "They want to keep the issue alive because they have nothing else to talk about," he added.