Modi requests "media friends" not to misquote his "tweets for TRPs"

Peeved over reports that quoted his remarks out of context, Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday asked the media not to "misquote" his tweets. Modi's statement came in the wake of his Bihar counterpart Nitish Kumar reportedly saying that NDA's prime ministerial candidate should have "secular credentials and should be acceptable to all sections of the society". Modi tweeted on the social networking site Twitter quoting Swami Vivekananda, "Will is caused by character, and character by Karma. As is Karma, so is the manifestation of the will."


The quote was taken as a reply of Modi to Nitish Kumar. However, in the evening Modi re-tweeted saying, "Every morning I share an inspiring quote of Swami Vivekananda on his 150th anniversary. I request media friends not to misquote it for TRPs". Analysts say Modi's clarification means that he is at present keeping mum on the issue of comments of Kumar on his prime ministerial ambitions.


The comments assume significance as these come at a time when Modi is being talked about as a prospective BJP candidate for the Prime Minister's post. Modi has shared a rough relationship with Kumar, after the later denied him entry in Bihar for campaigning during the 2009 Lok Sabha elections. The recent comments of Modi regarding Bihar's caste based politics also drew sharp criticism from Kumar who had rebuffed Modi by saying that he should mind his own business.