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Former Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad on Tuesday heaped praises on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, calling him a statesman who never took any revenge despite the former attacking him on issues like Article 370, Citizenship Amendment Act or hijab row.
“I must give credit to Modi. For what I did to him, he was too generous. As Leader of the Opposition I did not spare him on any issue be it Article 370 or CAA or hijab. I got some Bills totally failed but I must give him the credit that he behaved like a statesman, not taking revenge for that”, Azad told ANI in an interview.
Azad’s remark is contrast with those of opposition leaders who have accused the Modi government of misusing agencies like the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to silence its critics.
But this is not the first time when Azad has praised the prime minister. The former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister in 2021 had said he appreciates Modi for not hiding the fact that he hails from a village and sold tea.
“I like a lot of things about many leaders. I am from the village and feel proud… Even our Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) hails from the village and used to sell tea. We are political rivals but I appreciate that he does not hide his true self,” he had said in Jammu that year.
Azad’s response had come after PM Modi praised him, calling the J&K leader a true friend’. “Power comes and goes, but only a few know how to digest it. Therefore, as a friend, I respect him for the things he has done over the years”, the prime minister had said.
Last year, Azad once again praised the PM, saying he had a wrong perception of him earlier. “I used to think PM Modi is a crude man. that he does not have children, but he showed humanity. “I used to think PM Modi is a crude man. that he does not have children, but he showed humanity. Modi Sahab – he was the Gujarat CM at the time – dialled me up. But I was crying. I told my officials that I could not speak. I think he heard me crying. I said my people wanted me”, he recalled.
Azad had resigned from the Congress last year with an explosive resignation letter hitting out at Gandhis. In his letter, he had hit out at Rahul Gandhi calling him a ‘non-serious’ politician.
“This all happened because the leadership in the past 08 years has tried to foist a non-serious individual at the helm of the party”, Azad had said explaining why the Congress ceded space to the BJP in the national level and regional parties in the state level.
