Thursday, May 12 2005 20:20 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) veteran Sunder Singh Bhandari, who was the Governor of Gujarat during the Godhra riots, dropped a bombshell today (May 12, 2005) by comparing the riots with the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi and accusing Chief Minister of Narendra Modi of taking the violence "lightly".

In remarks critical of both Modi and the then BJP-led Central Government, he said that removal of the controversial Chief Minister was one of the ways which could have prevented the situation from deteriorating. The situation would have not worsened if the central leadership had reacted immediately, he told Hindi magazine "Outlook Saptahik".

"The riots were taken lightly and this left deep wounds which need to be healed. People would continue to remember Godhra in the same ways they recall the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi which took place 50 years ago," he is quoted as saying.

The riots continued for two days due to late action. If action would have been taken on the first day, it would have been better, Bhandari said.