A story under this headline was reported this month: ‘No Muslim name finds place in BJP’s Bengal list’. The story went on to provide readers the numbers, that is to say, how many tickets were distributed and so on, but beyond that headline, there is not much to add. This does not surprise most of us, because the data since 2014 have taught us what the BJP wants.

In the last three Lok Sabhas, the BJP has won 282, 303 and 260 seats without a Muslim. It has over 100 MPs in the Rajya Sabha — none of them Muslim. A decade or so ago, it was reported that it had over a thousand MLAs across India, of whom one was Muslim. There is no Muslim minister in the Union cabinet, for the first time since 1947.

Again, this does not surprise us because, if there is one thing to be appreciated about the BJP, it is honesty. The party, especially in its current edition under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is clear about the fact that it seeks total exclusion of India’s largest minority, against whom it holds historical resentment.

We need not go into the merits of this sentiment, other than to acknowledge that this is how the party and many of its votaries feel. The issue to consider is something else. Why, given how clear the BJP and the prime minister in particular are about pushing this exclusion, do we then hear things like ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vishwas’ and ‘140 crore........

© National Herald