Question raised over Modi refusing to wear Muslim skull cap

Some members of the minority community in Bangalore questioned BJP prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi’s decision not to wear a skull cap offered to him by a Muslim cleric during a public rally in Gujarat in 2011.

The question came up at an interaction over a book ‘Modi, Muslims and Media’ authored and released by academic and writer Madhu Kishwar here on Saturday.

Kishwar, a supporter of Modi’s candidature for the post of prime minister, however, clarified that the Gujarat chief minister had never said ‘no’ to the cap. “The cleric had a chaddar in one hand and a cap in the other. Modi took the chaddar, which has more prominence in the religion. This was given a negative coverage in the media across the country,” she said.

Jaffer Sareshwala, a businessman from Gujarat, chimed in saying, “Wearing or not wearing a skull cap does not prove the secular credentials of a person.”

Some in the audience also sought to know why Modi was projected as being pro-development, when he had little to offer to the community. Kishwar said Modi was indeed pro-development and was providing electricity and other basic amenities to all the people. “It is meant for everybody, including Muslims,” she said.

The interaction was organised by the BJP Minority Morcha.