Behind every political image is a backstory. So, when pictures emerged on Tuesday morning of senior Sikh influencer Tarlochan Singh meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the latter’s official residence in Delhi, curiosity about the significance of the meeting was natural.A recall of history puts Tarlochan Singh’s engagement with the Prime Minister in perspective. It was during Singh’s tenure as Vice-Chairman of the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) that the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS), the BJP’s parent organisation, officially acknowledged for the first time in public that Sikhism was a separate religion with a distinct ideology.The clarification came during a press conference held by RSS spokesperson MG Vaidya at the NCM headquarters in Delhi in January 2001.The press conference was necessitated by the controversy that erupted after K Sudarshan, then RSS chief, described Sikhism as a “panth of Hinduism”.“We regard Sikhism as a separate religion with a distinct ideology and the RSS has never entertained any idea of obliterating the identity of the Sikhs,” Vaidya said, adding that the RSS had never insisted that Sikhs change their attire when attending Sangh shakhas.The public acknowledgement was significant and came after several back-channel meetings that Tarlochan Singh arranged with RSS leaders to address mutual misgivings between the two communities, which share a history of brotherhood.At the same time, the RSS has maintained that everyone residing in Bharat is part of a larger cultural Hindu unity, defined more by civilisational than religious solidarity.The RSS’s stand on Sikhism was reiterated by Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat, who, while speaking in Ludhiana in February this year, said, “The RSS treats all citizens equally and considers Sikhism as a separate and distinct religion. At the same time the Sangh views Hinduism not as a religion but a way of life.”The statements have assumed significance in the run-up to the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections.