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In the minority-dominated Juhapura area of Sarkhej constituency, life looks normal as the month of Ramzan nears its end.
But Id and elections bring fears. "We feel polling booths will not be allowed to be put up. The police did not give us protection earlier. The BJP is against the Muslims," a resident says.
In the same city, people swear by the BJP in Khadia constituency, which is represented by Health Minister Ashok Bhatt, saying, "It helped the Hindus."
Sarkhej is the largest constituency of Ahmedabad with around 800,000 voters, of which around 100,000 are from the minority community. Most of the Muslims moved from Old City after the 1982 riots.
Himanshu Patel (35), a youth Congress leader, is taking on the BJP's Amit Shah, the sitting MLA, in the constituency where six other parties are in the fray.
"Shah won last time because of the sympathy votes after the death of BJP leader H L Patel. That is not the case this time," says Patel.
In Juhapura, where there are no election posters or blaring loudspeakers, people are yet to feel the election heat.
"There is no feeling of elections right now. There is tension in the air with Id approaching. But no one will be afraid of voting," says Maumin Sahib, a retired school principal, adding that he knows the BJP will return to power.
He has seen communal violence in the city earlier, but alleges that this time "the government and police were in it together".
But Mangaji Thakore, a labourer, says people forget violence very fast and water, electricity and power are the major issues while voting. "We poor suffer whichever party comes to power -- the BJP or Congress."
Nazin Hussain, who is in construction business in Sarkhej, says Muslims could not move to the city for nearly four months after the riots. "We had voted for BJP earlier."
In the BJP bastion of Khadia, the city's smallest constituency with an electorate of 73,498, saffron posters hang everywhere.
Bhatt, who has seen victory in six consecutive polls, says terrorism, development and water flowing in the Sabarmati from the Narmada are major issues. "I don't divide votes on basis of caste and community," he says.
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