Union minister Rahman Khan calls Modi unstable over 'puppy' remark

Slamming Narendra Modi's remarks on Gujarat riots, Union minority affairs minister Rahman Khan today described the Gujarat chief minister as "a frustrated person" who was not stable.

Slamming Narendra Modi's remarks on Gujarat riots, Union minority affairs minister Rahman Khan on Saturday described the Gujarat chief minister as "a frustrated person" who was not stable.

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"He (Modi) is not a stable man. He doesn't know what he wants to convey to the people. Sometimes he is a Hindu nationalist and sometimes a nationalist," he told reporters on the sidelines of an event in Bangalore.

Modi had stirred up a political storm by saying in an interview that he had done "absolutely the right thing" during the 2002 Gujarat riots and describing himself as a "Hindu nationalist".

The Gujarat strongman's comment that even if a "puppy comes under the wheel of a car, one feels sad", also drew sharp condemnation with political rivals including Congress and SP, calling his remarks as "insensitive and reflection of his mindset" over the death of Muslims in 2002 post-Godhra riots.

Going into damage control mode, Modi had tweeted that all forms of life are valued and worshipped in Indian culture, while BJP defended him by saying "a controversy has been created where it does not exist."

"It reflects the person's thinking. It also shows he (Modi) is a frustrated person," Khan said.

"No statesman can give such a statement and hence the less said the better," he added.