Manmohan says he is taking Modi very seriously

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday acknowledged that BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi did pose a challenge to the Congress and declared that “there is no room for complacency”.

Taking questions from the audience during the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit in New Delhi, Dr. Singh while responding to a query on which Mr. Modi was indeed a challenge that Congress party should take very seriously said: “As an organised political party we can not underestimate the power of opposition to unsettle the ship of the State. Therefore I am one of those who take very seriously our opposition, there is no room for complacency.”

The Congress, he said, “is going into the elections with a spirit of self confidence and that should not be mistaken whatever the may be the outcome of the Assembly elections.”  Communal Violence Bill not a gimmick

To another question on the need and timing of the Communal Violence Bill, Dr. Singh categorically said “it is not a vote catching gimmick.”

Declaring that it was a Bill “whose time had come”, he noted how in the last five or six years the country has been grappling with the problem of communal riots in one or the other part. In particular, the Prime Minister made a mention to the recent riots in Muzaffarnagar and noted how it was a reminder that although as a country we can take pride in our ability to protect all the people of our country, yet there are times when that does not happen.

“Our effort has been to create an environment where the officials would have the responsibility to look after the law and order situation as effectively as is humanly possibly. Plus, also if riots cannot be prevented there should be very quick compensation for the victims. So I think these are two basic principles which underline the purpose of the Communal Violence Bill.”