Muslims break free

An interesting sub-text of the BJP's sweeping victory in the recent Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation election is the choice exercised by Muslim voters. Detailed analysis of the result shows that 'secular' mythmaking that portrays the BJP as "anti-minorities" and demonises Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi have begun to fetch diminishing returns in Ahmedabad.

A large number of Muslims have voted to throw out incumbent Congress corporators, including co-religionists who have till now won successive elections by peddling the hackneyed "Congress-alone-can-protect-Muslims" propagandist line. This is most obvious in BJP president LK Advani's Lok Sabha constituency where the party's nominees have been elected in 48 of the 57 corporation wards, many of which have a significantly large Muslim population.