 "'Sent envoy to Israel to stop bombing at least during Ramzan': PM Modi")
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said that he sent an envoy to Israel to appeal to their government to cease bombing in Gaza during the holy month of Ramzan.
In an interview with India Today TV, PM Modi recounted how he made an effort to get Israel to halt bombing in Gaza during Ramzan.
He said, "It was the month of Ramzan. So I sent my special envoy to Israel and asked him to convey and explain to the Prime Minister [Benjamin Netanyahu] that at least do not carry out bombings in Gaza during Ramzan. They [Israel] made every effort to follow it but in the end, there was a fight for two-three days."
"Here, you keep on cornering me on the Muslims issue but I didn't publicise it," PM Modi said, referring to the Opposition's charge of communal politics against him.
The Prime Minister further highlighted his steadfast approach to secularism, eschewing symbolic gestures in favour of substantive action. "There was a fashion earlier that if one has to go to Israel, a visit to Palestine is a must. Do secularism and come back. But I refused to do it," he said, adding that he conducted standalone visits to both Israel and Palestine.
Reflecting on a poignant anecdote during a journey to Palestine via Jordan, PM Modi recounted, "When the President of Jordan, who is a direct descendent of Prophet Muhammad, came to know that I am going to Palestine over [the airspace of Jordan], he told me 'Modi ji, you cannot go like this. You are my guest and will use my helicopter'."
"I went to his home for dinner, but the helicopter was of Jordan, the destination was Palestine, and I was escorted by Israeli flight attendants. All three are different but for Modi, all came together in the sky. I believe that all this happens when your intentions are good," he added.
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Transitioning to the Russia-Ukraine conundrum, PM Modi affirmed India's principled stance. "Both countries know that India will say the correct thing," he said.
"If President Putin praises me a lot, it does not mean that I cannot meet him and tell him that it is not the time for war. He will also respect me for the fact that he has at least one friend who tells him clearly what is right and wrong. Ukraine also has the same trust in me, in India, that we will say the correct thing and till now we have done the same," the Prime Minister said.
In response to Western criticism over India's oil trade with Russia amid global tensions, PM Modi said, "If I need oil from Russia for my country, I will take it and won't hide it. It is not done secretly, and I don't need to ask anyone. I can tell America that my country needs petrol at cheap rates. So I don't hide it, and I run the country on my own terms.
PM Modi also discussed the recent Chabahar Port deal between India and Iran, stating that though the area is surrounded by unpredictabilities, India won't make any decision based on any second or third party. "We will make decisions for ourselves," he added.