AHMEDABAD, INDIA, April 4, 2002: Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on Thursday told Muslims of Gujarat that they were not alone at this time of crisis and the entire country was behind them. “You are not alone at this time of crisis. We all are with you. The entire country is with you,” he told the riot victims at the Shah Alam Relief camp where nearly 8,000 Muslims affected by the communal violence have taken shelter. In a hard-hitting and emotional outburst, Vajpayee said, “Apne desh mein refugee ho jana, yeh dil ko cheerane wali baat hai (“Becoming a refugee in ones own country is something that pierces the heart). He said India had prestige in the comity of nations for its pluralistic character which has been badly affected by this communal violence. He said “with what face, I do not know, I will go abroad after what all has happened here.”
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