Ahmedabad:
When his closest aide was sent to prison because of his alleged involvement with the murder of Sohrabuddin Sheikh, many wondered how Narendra Modi would counter what was, at the very least, some very bad publicity.
But few politicians have the skill to turn a weak link into a war cry as effectively as Modi.
And so, at one rally after another, in the last week, the Gujarat chief minister has attacked the Opposition over the current high-voltage inquiry into Sohrabuddin's murder, one that's being conducted by the CBI. "I appeal to the people of Gujarat that when Congress candidates comes to you seeking votes, first ask them how are they related to Sohrabuddin Sheikh?"
Gujarat is on the verge of elections in six municipalities.
In July, Amit Shah, Modi's Minister of state for Home, was arrested. According to the CBI, evidence suggested that Shah commissioned some of Gujarat's senior-most policemen to abduct and then kill Sohrabuddin Sheikh, a small-time criminal in November 2005. Sources say Sheikh had become an irritant for Rajasthan's powerful marble lobby - he repeatedly tried to extort money from businessman, who approached local politicians for help. And it was these local leaders who allegedly contacted Shah and asked him to have Sheikh eliminated.
Modi says this chain of events is a political conspiracy unleashed upon his state by the Congress. In the apst, he has accused the CBI of being little more than an errand boy for a union government looking to settle political scores.
The Congress says instead of retaliating to Modi's bluster, it will focus on local issues in the upcoming elections.
"In Ahmedabad you have problems of potholes, overflowing gutters, bad roads. Instead of focussing on such issues, he is raising other issues to gain political points. It won't work," offers Siddharth Patel who is the Congress President, Gujarat.