At the function, speaker after speaker declared that Chauhan had done more for the minorities than any other Chief Minister of the state. The claim stuck in the throats of many. And these included Muslims as well as non-Muslims. Muslims in general and the Muslim intelligentsia in particular, were curious to know about the contribution of Chauhan and the BJP government he is leading for the last seven years, to the well-being of the Muslim community. Sajid Siddiqui, a member of the “Co-ordination committee for Indian Muslims” recalled the point blank refusal of the Chief Minister to implement the recommendations of the Sacchar committee. Speaking on the floor of the Assembly, the Chief Minister categorically declared that “under no circumstances” would the Sacchar committee report be implemented as it would “lead to another partition of the country”.

Addressing the massive gathering of Muslims, the CM assured them of full security. Ridiculing this assurance, several Muslim leaders listed the incidents of communal strife in the state, in which the Muslims had borne the brunt of the violence. In all, 86 incidents of communal violence were reported in the state since the BJP came to power in 2003. In some of these incidents, the houses and shops of Muslims were looted and burnt, in others; there was loss of human lives too. But the most shocking aspect of all these incidents was the total indifference of the police and the administrative machinery towards the task of getting the guilty punished.

The Chief Minister’s felicitation programme was held in “Iqbal maidan” (Iqbal ground). The ground is named after eminent poet Dr. Iqbal, who is blamed by the RSS for the partition of the country. The maidan was decorated with pictures and cutouts of AB Vajpayee, Nitin Gadkari, Sushma Swaraj, Shahnawaz Hussain and state BJP President Prabhat Jha. However, party veteran Lal Krishna Advani’s picture was missing. Many felt it was done deliberately, given Advani’s image of a hardened anti-Muslim leader and his role in the demolition of the Babri masjid. There were also hoardings depicting what the Shivraj Singh government had done for the minorities but, understandably, they were not many.

Among those who attended the massive show was KS Sudarshan, former RSS Chief. Addressing the gathering, Chief Minister announced that the state government had decided to build Haj houses at Bhopal and Indore. The Chief Minister reiterated that his government was committed to the welfare of the Muslims. He claimed that the number of Muslim students receiving scholarships instituted by the state government had gone up from 10 thousand to 81 thousand and would touch the 1 lakh figure by next year. A separate hostel would be built for Muslim girl students in Bhopal. There will be a hostel for Muslim students at every district headquarter. He announced that three persons with a record of serving the community will be felicitated every year. They will be presented a purse of Rs. one lakh each.

The Chief Minister, Shahnawaz Hussain and other leaders chose the occasion to launch a blistering attack on the Congress. They accused the Congress of dividing the Hindus and Muslims while the BJP, they declared, considered Hindus and Muslims as “two hands of Bharat Mata”. The speakers repeatedly asserted that the Muslims were safe in MP and that they enjoyed the same facilities and benefits which the Hindus enjoyed.

It may be noted that the felicitation ceremony took place in the assembly constituency of Arif Aqueel, the sole Muslim member of the 230-member assembly. Barring once, this constituency has always been represented by a Muslim. In the first election (1957) held after the constitution of MP in 1956, veteran Communist leader Shakir Ali Khan was elected from here. He held this constituency till 1977. After his death, the constituency continued to elect Muslims. However, in 1993, BJP nominee Ramesh Sharma was elected from here. His election was the result of polarisation of votes on communal lines following the ghastly post-Babri riots in Bhopal in 1992. Incidentally, it was the first communal riot that Bhopal witnessed.

In 1998, a Muslim was again elected from here. Ditto in 2003 and 2008. During the felicitation, Alok Sharma was introduced to the audience. It was announced that he would be the BJP candidate from the constituency in the assembly elections to be held in 2013. Interestingly, Sharma is the first and the only BJP leader to be declared the party candidate for the elections, which are two years away. Many felt that the BJP could have chosen a Muslim as its candidate from this constituency. Such a decision could have sent a positive signal and would have helped the party garner Muslim votes in other constituencies as well. The decision to field a Hindu from a predominantly Muslim constituency sent a wrong signal. Muslim leaders say that the decision was yet another proof—if any were needed—that the BJP does not trust Muslims.

The message of the BJP to the Muslims was quite clear. Vote for us and we will ensure your security and meet all your demands, of course, minus the implementation of the Sacchar committee report. (IPA Service)