It was a different Chief Minister Narendra Modi who walked through the terror-shadowed bylanes of Surat on Wednesday.
Battered by a series of blasts in Ahmedabad and the discovery of several bombs in Surat, the Gujarat chief minister was without his usual boasts, promises of security and jibes at political opponents. He was, obviously, ruffled by the grim turn of events.
Everyone -- the chief minister, his followers, and their opponents -- in Gujarat is shell-shocked by the extent and depth terrorism's tentacles have reached in the state. Even if no one has been killed in Surat, shock and fear of the unknown are playing upon people's minds.
Image: Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi taking stock of the situation with a senior police official.
Text: Vikram Vakil | Photographs: Paresh Gandhi
Also see: Ahmedabad Blasts