"We fear attacks"

Syed Bukhari's appeal to Muslims to support the BJP has touched a raw nerve among those still haunted by 1992-93 Hindu-Muslim riots.

Delhi Jama Masjid chief cleric Syed Ahmed Bukhari's appeal for Muslims to support the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has touched a raw nerve among those still haunted by memories of the 1992-93 Hindu-Muslim riots.

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Days after Bukhari asked Muslims to "take a fresh look at the BJP", Muslims in the Maharashtra capital are not about to forget the trauma of the bloody riots, allegedly fanned by BJP's closest ally Shiv Sena and other Hindu affiliates.

"Has the Shahi Imam forgotten the Mumbai riots and the atrocities committed against us by the Shiv Sena?" wonders S.M. Meerza, a businessman dealing with chemicals and dyes.

"The choice to vote is personal and religion has to be kept out of it."

The riots followed the razing of the Babri mosque in Ayodhya by a Hindu mob in December 1992, sparking communal bloodshed across the nation.

Mumbai was one of the worst affected cities with its large pockets of Muslim concentration, and for many of them, the BJP and the Shiv Sena are an anathema.

R.M. Mulla, the general manager of a blue chip company housed in Nariman Point, remarks: "The pain and suffering of our people during the riots is still fresh. We cannot take a fresh look at BJP when so many of its leaders are associated with the Babri mosque demolition."

As one travels to the Mohammed Ali Road, the heart of the city's Muslim population, sentiments burst out with greater severity and indignation.

Says Isaac Sheikh: "We cannot bring ourselves to support BJP, whatever the Imam may say. This is a political joke. We lived through the riots, not Bukhari!"

Mechanic S. Abbas fiercely rejected the possibility.

"It is good to see Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and his deputy L.K. Advani in green turbans, but do they really care for us? They embrace us when they need us and reject us when they want to".

There are, of course, some who see no harm in trying out a more conciliatory approach.

Imran Ali, a restaurant waiter welcomed the BJP's bid to garner support from Muslims. "It is time we stop being a 'minority' community, we too need to play a constructive role in nation building."

But almost immediately, he was heckled to silence by some of his brethren.

Owners of the Suleman Mithaiwala sweet shop, who fell victim to the riots, avoided any comment. "God is Great," the manager shrugged.

Most Muslims said they were waiting for the Friday prayers to get a clearer picture of the Shahi Imam's call.

"We will weigh the significance of what he says and decide accordingly. But our vote has always been with the Congress party," declared Anwar Yousuf, a doctor based in Malavani, a suburb set up to rehabilitate displaced riot victims.

Imran Khan breaks down when he recounts how he lost his father, brother and uncle to the riots, and was later forced to move from his South Mumbai residence to Malavani.

"Politics and religion do not mix," Khan remarked. "The Shahi Imam is a man of god. He should not give in to BJP. Can the Shahi Imam bring back my father, brother and uncle who were killed in cold blood?"

An educationist, A. Rizvi cautiously said: "During elections many appeals are made. Let us see who we vote."

College goer Yusuf Ali feels betrayed. "If BJP was really interested in Muslims, they would have started patching up long ago - not just before elections," says the student of St. Xavier's College.

The last word belonged to Ismailbhai, a pan vendor at Khar, another Muslim dominated suburb of Mumbai.

"This is the biggest joke of this election. Ask the Shahi Imam to stay in Mumbai for a month and he will see what we go through -- from a Hindu-dominated police force to the ration office, even the passport office.

"I would like to tell the prime minister and the Shahi Imam that being Muslim is a liability in this country.

"We still live in fear of being attacked in this city."