He blamed this on vote bank politics and called on his MPs “to puncture the myth of fear”. To underline his commitment to win the trust of minorities, he added the words sab ka vishwas (everyone’s trust) to the slogan he coined after the 2014 election, sabka sath, sab ka vikas (together with all, development for all). But putting the blame for the minorities’ fear on the opposition’s vote bank politics is not an encouraging start. But there is no sign yet of Modi abandoning a fundamental tactic of his electioneering: arousing fear of the Muslim minority with the aim of creating a Hindu vote. When he speaks from the Red Fort on August 15, will there be more welcome surprises for the minorities?

Source: Hindustan Times June 15, 2019 17:03 UTC