Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi ended his three-day fast for peace, unity and harmony here on Monday evening.
Modi broke his Sadbhavna fast at 6:13 p.m. by drinking lemon water. Leaders of various faiths were present along with senior senior BJP leaders including Sushma Swaraj and M Venkaiah Naidu
"My fast might have ended, but the process of progress has just begun. The fast under 'Sadbhavana Mission' is not only for Gujarat, but whole of India. This fast under Sadbhavana has united the nation. Everything does not have to have a political agenda," Modi told his supporters after breaking the fast.
Modi began a 'harmony fast' on Saturday to soften his image as a hardliner blamed for religious riots that claimed thousands of lives in 2002.
The fast was seen by many as a bid by Narendra Modi and his party, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), to launch him as a national leader .
Seizing the moment after the Supreme Court referred to a lower court a case in which Modi was accused of complicity in the 2002 violence, he used the fast to depict himself as a conciliator with a strong record to build the economy of the state.
After leading Gujarat for the past decade, there has been speculation Modi would seek a greater role in national politics as the contender for the Prime Minister''s post in the next general elections.