The Congress’s entire approach to Muslims during this period should be seen through the prism of electoral politics. Any overture to help Muslims would, in this appraisal, lead to a haemorrhaging of the Hindu vote. As we have noted, Congress leaders like Sitaram Kesri felt that one of the reasons for Rajiv’s massive victory in 1984 was Hindu appreciation for strong action against Sikh communalism. An extension of this argument was that no minority community should be ‘appeased’ because that would precipitate a Hindu backlash.
