Modi had gone to rescue of his Muslim barber

[Guest guest]

Modi had gone to rescue of his Muslim barber,

- December 02, 2002, Asian Age

By Deepal Trevedie and Ojas Mehta

 

 

Ahmedabad, Dec. 2: This can be hair-raising news for all staunch Hindu

Narendra Modi fans. Mr Modi has a strong Muslim connection and the

two-and-a-half-decade-old bond has not been severed even by the Godhra

riots. On one hand Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi has been

accused of complicity in the riots in which Muslims were targeted and

their establishments burnt.

 

On the other hand, there is a Muslim who thanks Modi for whatever he

is in life today.

Shabbir Ismail Patel is a Muslim who says that Modi means much more to

him than a politician. "I wouldn't be here today if he wouldn't have

been around."

Shabbir first met Modi in 1982. A young lad walked into my shop. I

gave him a haircut which he liked. The bond has grown stronger over

the years. Prince Hair Care is a stone's throw away from the RSS

headquarters in Ahmedabad. The Hedgewar Bhavan which houses the RSS

headquarters was Narendra Modi's home for over two decades.

The Prince Hair Care became Narendra Modi's regular spot. In the 80s

Modi was all into a Rajesh Khanna-type hairstyle, says Shabbir. "He

had good hair. These days he is having a receding hair line."

>From Rajesh Khanna to a Tom Cruise cut, Shabbir has tried it all on

Narendra Modi. "Narendrabhai likes me so much that even when he was in

Delhi he would wait to come to Ahmedabad for a haircut," says Shabbir.

In fact, after Narendra Modi was sworn in the chief minister, Shabbir

distributed sweets. "He is my most prestigious client," he asserts.

However Shabbir's relationship with Narendra Modi is not known by

many. "My shop has always been targeted. After the Babri Masjid was

razed to the ground, the post Babri riots saw the destroying of my

shop. I then approached Narendrabhai who was here only. He helped me

get compensation and a loan. I got a Rs 40,000 loan and started work

again."

After Godhra happened, the next day on Gujarat Bandh day, his shop was

targeted and burnt completely. "I kept my shop closed for 22 days.

Again Mr Narendrabhai helped me to get a fresh loan of Rs 50,000. I

now have a freshly painted shop."

Infact, chief minister Modi after the riots have visited his shop

twice the last time being August. "He even assured me that everything

would be okay and there would be no problems now. If it wouldn't have

been for him I wouldn't have been able to start my shop again," says

Shabbir who is a devout Muslim but also believes in Saibaba.

Every session Modi has takes two and half hours and costs Rs 50. But

every time Shabbir goes to Gandhinagar, the charge is Rs 100. The

payment is always cash.

Unlike the usual barbers who communicate a lot with their clients,

Shabbir however has a grouse that Narendrabhai hardly talks.

The barber is so confident that he says whenever Narendrabhai wants a

haircut and doesn't have time, he sends me a car and calls me to

Gandhinagar. In the past, the hairdresser has also been to Bopal,

Sanskardham, where Mr Modi stayed when he came to Gujarat before he

became the chief minister.

"First I used to trim his beard also regularly but now he has an

American machine," he says.

Shabbir says that he has not seen anyone who is as down to earth as

Narendrabhai. "He has not changed at all and I feel bad when I read

nasty things about him in some newspapers."

Of course, not only will his family vote for him, I tell everyone who

comes here to even vote for him. "I owe him that much at least," says

Shabbir.

For the photograph, he made The Asian Age wait till he cleaned his

shop, gave a clean shave to himself and "set his hair".

"Whatever has happened in Gujarat is wrong but Narendrabhai is not

responsible," and don't forget to write this, he told The Asian Age.

"And if Narendrabhai stops visiting my shop for a haircut, I would

curse The Asian Age all my life," he says as he adjusts his small shop

which cannot accommodate more than three clients at a time. And there

is no phone. Chief minister Narendra Modi calls him up on 5324880,

which is a sweet shop nearby.

"See that what you write does not take away my Narendrabhai from me,"

Shabbir requests.

The VHP refused to comment on Modi's Muslim connection. Chief minister

Modi's office accepted that Shabbir was Modi's hairdresser but said

the chief minister was not available for comments.