Hazare may face vilification campaign for praising me: Modi

"Yesterday I heard about your blessings for me and my state. I fear that you will be subjected to vilification. A certain group inimical to Gujarat will not let go this opportunity to malign your love, sacrifice, penance and commitment to truth. They will try to tarnish your name because you spoke well of me and my state," Modi said in an open letter to Hazare.

Hazare, who led a successful campaign for the Lokpal bill had said yesterday that "the way the Chief Ministers of Gujarat and Bihar have worked in their states, this should be emulated by other Chief Ministers".

Listing various examples, Modi said "you may be aware that whosoever talks good of Gujarat, he or she will be subjected to the vilification campaign".

Earlier, a senior Muslim parliamentarian from Kerala belonging to CPI(M) P Abdulla Kutty was ostracised from the party after he praised Gujarat’s development, he recalled.

Superstar Amitabh was also attacked by this same group when he had worked for a video promoting Gujarat tourism.

Maulana Ghulam Vastanavi of Gujarat, who was elected as head of the Darul Uloom of Deoband, had also come in for criticism when he praised Gujarat's development, Modi pointed out.

Recently, Major General I S Sinha of Golden Katara Division of Indian Army, too was flayed by the same forces when he praised the development of Gujarat and there was even a demand for disciplinary action against him, Modi said.