Arif gets a wide berth

So Khan was left trying to persuade a handful of Muslim leaders — among them the BJP’s minority cell chief Gani Khan Qureshi — why they should vote for the BJP. He told them Muslims should not live in the past. Even though the community shared an uneasy relationship with the BJP, it should keep in mind that the party has brought progress and development, he said.

The meeting could have been an occasion for publicising Muslim inductions into the party. But that did not happen.

‘‘The plan of Muslims joining the BJP has been postponed. It will take place when more Muslim faces are around,’’ Pathan said.

BJP leaders denied they had shunned Khan. Said Mayaben Kodnani, chief of the party’s Ahmedabad unit, ‘‘Khan is in the city on a personal visit. It is not that we have shunned him. The only reason none of the local leaders accompanied Khan to the meeting was that a training programme for party leaders was on in Gandhinagar at the same time.’’ BJP’s Ahmedabad MLA and former Home minister Govardhanbhai Zadaphia said, ‘‘I’m not aware of the details of Khan’s visit as I was outside the state.’’ And Khadia MLA Ashok Bhatt said he was busy at the Gandhinagar meeting.

Khan played down the matter, saying he was in Ahmedabad only to ‘‘share his perspective on the BJP with friends.’’ But the BJP’s uneasiness with Muslims — the state unit’s, at least — was not lost on Shamsuddin Pirzada. ‘‘It seems BJP leaders here are not comfortable with Muslims joining the party.’’