LUCKNOW, Oct 21 (TOI) : Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi's U-turn on Archaeological Survey of India's treasure hunt at Daundiya Kheda in Unnao came after Shobhan Sarkar's displeasure over his comment in an open letter to him written by his emissary swami Omji. Having mocked at the digging for gold, Bharatiya Janata Party's PM candidate had later tweeted saying he had respect for the exercise at the swami's behest.
The letter first welcomes Modi to Kanpur and then registers unhappiness over the comment. "I want to say with all humility that in your hurry to attack the Central government and Sonia Gandhi, you have violated the dignity of a saint," the letter reads. It advises Modi not to waste time in unnecessary tirades and meet Shobhan Sarkar to see for himself if his request is fulfilled or not. "We are Raghuvanshi, and Shobhan Sarkar is Raghuvanshi Shiromani (most revered). We adhere to the 'praan jaaye par vachan na jaaye' maxim," reads the letter.
Stating that since Modi is being seen as India's next prime minister, the common man and Sant Samaj wants to know his views on certain issues. For this, Shobhan Sarkar invited Modi to hold a public debate. "Will you throw light on what, as prime minister, would you do, if you get information about gold hidden inside the earth, because you feel the nation's dignity is being mocked at by the present excavation? There are many issues for debate. I would request you to give us time," reads the letter.
The letter corners Modi and his party on several counts. Stating that BJP has governed under Atalji, it asks him why his government didn't bring black money back from Swiss banks when they were ruling. It also asks Modi to clarify if the money being spent on his and his party's campaign is 'white' or 'black'. He challenges BJP's ideology on Ram Setu. "It is an issue of faith with your party but I want to remind him that Lord Ram had asked Vibhishan to destroy the Ram setu before starting for Ayodhya. This may be verified in the Padma Purana. Please ask your party spokesman and Sudhanshu Mittal to study before raising issues of faith," says the letter.
The letter reminded Modi of the time when Sam Pitroda was launching the C-dot project in India to lay the foundations of computerization while his party under the leadership of 'great personality' Atal Bihari Vajpayee was screaming across the streets that computerization will put the nation into an unemployment trap. "Do you have the courage to admit that your party's stand at that time was wrong," questions Swami Omji in the letter.
It accuses them of demoralising the Army by raising issue of Bofors bribes and doubting the efficacy of the guns. It asks him why BJP not exposed the secret of Bofors bribes when it was ruling and also asked him to explain what would have happened during the Kargil war if Bofors guns were not there. It also wraps him up for his party's stand on the Tehri Dam. "Your party always saw Tehri dam as a danger and curse. Had there been no Tehri dam, the plains would have been washed away in the tragedy of Kedarnath and you would not have been able to address a rally in Kanpur," it read.
Regarding the excavation in Daundiya Kheda, the letter said Swami Shobhan Sarkar has dreamt of making India a superpower and to fulfil this dream, Swamiji has pledged to provide India with gold reserves more than the combined gold reserves of UK and USA. That's why he sent letters to Central and state governments requesting that the place be surveyed by GSI. The gold struck should be deposited in the treasury of Central government, says the letter, claiming that the swami wants to give India 21,000 tonnes of gold through such excavations.