[sacw] SACW | 26 Mar. 02 [ After the Gujarat riots in India ]

[Harsh Kapoor]

South Asia Citizens Wire - Dispatch | 26 March 2002
http://www.mnet.fr

__________________________

#1. On the third day of the relay hunger strike by People for Peace and
Secularism at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi (Nivedita Menon)
#2. After Gujarat, Ayodhya, Orissa - Fight POTO, Ban VHP (Praful Bidwai)
#3. People for Secular India holding a demonstration against the RSS=20
(Bombay, 27th March)
#4. Gujarat: Widely criticised for not doing enough (BBC Report)
#5. The Veiled Threat (Ram Puniyani)
#6. Gujarat rioters did it by the book (Rathin Das)
#7. Pro-VHP man to probe carnage in Gujarat
#8. Eye Witness Account of Looting and Burning in Kanwat [Gujarat]=20
(Rajesh Mishra)
#9. A letter to chachaji about the Gujarat riots( Raju)

__________________________

#1.

Date: Tue, 26 Mar 2002 11:12:57 +0530
From: Nivedita Menon <adiniv@v...>

On the third day of the relay hunger strike by People for Peace and
Secularism at Jantar Mantar, with the twin objectives of reaching out to
people and focusing attention on Gujarat, for the third consecutive day
there werefifty people on fast from 8am to 8pm, and about 200 people
coming in for some hours throughout the day in solidarity. Over 600
people have participated so far.
Yesterday was Muharram. At one point, when Swami Agnivesh's
distinctive saffron-clad straight-backed figure was addressing us, three
vehicles with colourful tazias, a few young boys in each, passed us on
their way to Karbala near Jor Bagh. On seeing the Swami's figure, the
first vehicle approaching us raised a cry of naara-e-taqbir, but the cry
tailed off as they passed our flags and Aman Ekta Manch banners. We
watched them go by, the traffic light was green, they drove through. It
was a moment that took a long time to pass. Did they know that Agnivesh
began his speech by saying "Bismillah-ur Rahman Ar Rahim"? Did they know
that the Kashmiri Sufi who walked off the road to join us sang a bhajan
to Vishnu? That it was a young Hindu boy who sang Bulle Shah with such
feeling? Did they feel angry, afraid, confused?
On different days different groups have mobilised - women's groups
on the first day, environmental groups the second, and University
teachers on the third. The shamiana is colourful and eye-catching, with
banners and flags and placards - the passing traffic cranes its neck to
catch the words (some of our placards are gentle and humanitarian,
others sharply political). We are strategically located near a traffic
light, so at every red light, we run with our leaflets, which are
eagerly taken from us by hands reaching down from bus windows. One or
two are thrown out at us angrily - crumpled or torn. But many more are
read seriously. Close to twenty thousand leaflets have been distributed
in the last three days.
They have been carefully drafted, our leaflets, to reflect the minimum
consensus painfully arrived at by the large range of opinions we
represent. So there is a call for harmony and living together
peacefully, but there is also a sharp attack on the VHP and Narendra
Modi's government.
Some passers by have stopped, joining us in solidarity. A few have
come back the next day to sit with us again, and even to sing for us.
Throughout the day on all three days there have been songs of hope and
harmony and revolution. Some others passing by have engaged us in
discussion and argument - politely, sometimes aggressively, but we have
been talking and talking to everyone who would listen. Every discussion
has had a ring of silent spectators collecting - surely they have gone
away with at least an alternative view point to think about? Sometimes
we have been supported by one or two among the listeners, and then our
hearts are full.
Many of those who joined us have asked in perplexity - But why is
such a large and significant event not in the media? Why are we not
reading about it, or seeing it on TV? We don't have an answer. But
perhaps only some kind of events make news - violence, or famous faces.
Not large-scale consistent activity by hundreds of ordinary people
trying to make their voices heard.
Later in the evening yesterday a large tazia procession came down
Jantar Mantar just as Reba Som was singing Tagore. This time we went
among them and gave out our leaflets, hundreds and hundreds of them, to
the young boys flourishing their green leafy branches, girls and women
on tongas, young men suspicious at first, but reading as they walked,
our leaflets that were in Hindi, Urdu and English. Reba stopped singing
as they passed, and we listened instead, to the music from their
procession, to their shouts of religious fervour. Then they were
through, and we returned to Tagore. And as on all the other evenings,
ended by holding candles and lining the pavement for the entire
length of the road. Still and reflective.
We have a very long battle ahead. And other strategies to create.
But in the meanwhile, we'll be at Jantar Mantar from 8am to 8pm till the
28th, which is Holi. Join us.

_______

#2.

The Praful Bidwai Column for the week beginning March 25

After Gujarat, Ayodhya, Orissa

Fight POTO, Ban VHP

By Praful Bidwai

It is a telling comment on the quality of the Bharatiya Janata=20
Party=92s leadership that Ramachandra Paramahans (93), president of the=20
Ramjanmabhoomi Nyas (RJN), mahant of Digambar Akhara, and one of the=20
principal villains of Ayodhya, has just declared Mr Atal Behari=20
Vajpayee a =93hidden supporter=94 of the temple movement. He likens Mr=20
Vajpayee to a pativrata, so reverential towards her husband that she=20
dare not utter his name, although =93she loves him more=94 than an=20
ordinary wife. =93Similarly, [Vajpayee] may not take the name of=20
Ramjanmabhoomi, but he knows that he is in power because of it and=20
supports it =85=94

The mahant=92s stated reason for saying this is that Mr Vajpayee=20
despatched Mr Shatrughan Singh, director of the Ayodhya cell in the=20
Prime Minister=92s Office, to genuflect before him and accept the shila=20
daan on March 15. This decision, and Mr Singh=92s crass public display=20
of his private religious faith--utterly impermissible for a civil=20
servant--is reason enough for Mr Paramahans to be pleased as punch=20
with the Vajpayee government.

There could be no clearer proof of what the March 15 ceremony really=20
meant at least for the protagonists of the temple campaign: a=20
shameful act of sacrilege against the Constitution and appeasement of=20
Hindutva bullies by the government, which has implicitly but=20
demonstratively legitimised the inauguration of the temple=20
construction plan. The shila is not just a carved pillar of Dholpur=20
stone. It is a component of what the VHP has decided will become a=20
temple--no matter what the Supreme Court says. By kowtowing to the=20
VHP, the government has sent out the signal that it will reward=20
communal thugs. If they do not agree to respect the law, it will even=20
pamper them with dishonourable =93compromise=94 formulas that make a=20
mockery not just of the law but of democratic decency and secularism.

That the government indulged in this act of appeasement despite the=20
Supreme Court=92s order not to favour the VHP and maintain strict=20
neutrality in respect of the Ayodhya land further compounds its=20
culpability. The Court had not merely ordered the maintenance of the=20
status quo as regards the entire 67.7-acre plot. It also reprimanded=20
Attorney General Soli J. Sorabjee for suggesting that a tilt towards=20
the VHP can be compatible with the =93basic structure=94 of the=20
Constitution. Its March 13 obiter dicta were a directive not to=20
privilege the VHP-RJN. Yet the government did just that.

To accomplish this, Mr Vajpayee had to beg RSS hardliners to=20
intercede with the RJN on his behalf, thus yielding ground to them=20
and accepting their ultimate moral-political authority over the=20
entire sangh parivar, including the BJP. That retreat was bad enough.=20
Worse, Mr Vajpayee also involved civil servants, including Mr Singh,=20
Mr Navneet Sehgal, former Faizabad district magistrate, and Mr=20
Harbhajan Singh, former police superintendent. These men became=20
accomplices of the BJP=92s parochial agenda pertaining to Ayodhya. They=20
blatantly violated their Constitutional obligation not to side with=20
any one religious community. They gratuitously allowed the civil=20
service to be politicised--in the worst sense of the term.

Even more odious was the conduct of Mr Sorabjee who, to his abiding=20
disgrace, pleaded the VHP=92s case. He so =93creatively=94 interpreted the=
=20
Supreme Court=92s 1994 judgment that a violation of the mandated=20
Ayodhya status quo would be effected through a =93limited=94 shila pujan=20
with 50 to 70 sants, lasting a good three hours. This is precisely=20
the kind of dishonourable =93compromise=94 (read, betrayal of the state=92s=
=20
obligation to defend secularism) that the VHP-RJN has long craved.=20
What aggravates Mr Sorabjee=92s culpability is his astounding claim=20
that he appeared in the Ayodhya case in his personal, not official,=20
capacity!

Now, the Attorney General=92s is an exalted, exceptional, office in the=20
Westminster system we have adopted. The AG is the government=92s=20
highest law officer and legal representative, who can appear in any=20
court in India. He is also its chief legal adviser, whose opinion is=20
sought by the courts, and by Parliament too. The AG=92s mandate is to=20
perform comprehensive =93duties of a legal character, as may from time=20
to time be referred or assigned=94. His remuneration is fixed directly=20
by the President, without reference to government pay-scales. The=20
post has no age bar. The AG is the only officer of the government who=20
has a right to participate in the proceedings of both Houses of=20
Parliament.

On March 13, Mr Sorabjee was asked by the Court to outline the=20
government=92s stand, not his personal position, on the 1994 judgment.=20
But the position he detailed was identical to that of the PM, the law=20
and home ministers, and the VHP itself! Mr Sorabjee has a blemished=20
record. He was appointed AG in 1996 by the United Front. Following a=20
well-established convention, he should have resigned in 1998 when=20
that government fell. Instead, he begged the National Democratic=20
Alliance to continue him. That was bad enough. But his self-serving=20
March 13 argument was downright disingenuous and a disservice to his=20
office, for which credibility and respect for Constitutional norms=20
are central.

The government has thus itself instigated the politicisation of the=20
civil service and important Constitutional offices. This is similar=20
to what Mr Narendra Modi accomplished in Gujarat last=20
fortnight--albeit in more extreme and violent forms. The two=20
processes differ in magnitude and effect. But kowtowing to extremism=20
and communalising the bureaucracy are identical in both.

The point is plain: the Vajpayee government is inflicting grievous=20
damage upon our democratic institutions. Each additional day it stays=20
in office, every time it is asked to defend all Indian citizens, in=20
each crisis that confronts this society, it fails--abysmally. After=20
Gujarat, Ayodhya, and now Orissa, it has lost moral legitimacy and=20
its right to govern. It is equally plain that rabidly communal groups=20
like the VHP and Bajrang Dal flourish largely because the BJP=20
supports, shields, encourages and instigates them.

Their thugs wouldn=92t have had the audacity to vandalise the Orissa=20
Assembly had Mr Vajpayee not sent out strong communal signals=20
regarding Ayodhya and Gujarat, including his refusal to sack Mr=20
Narendra Milosevic Modi. Nor would the RSS have passed an obnoxious=20
resolution at Bangalore telling Muslims that their =93real safety=94=20
depends on the =93goodwill=94 of the Hindu majority.

In essence, this nasty threat is no different from the idea advanced=20
by Golwalkar way back in 1939: =93Non-Hindu people in Hindustan must=20
adopt the Hindu culture and language =85 learn to respect and hold in=20
reverence Hindu religion=85 [they] must entertain no idea but=20
glorification of the Hindu race and culture =85 they =85 may stay in the=20
country wholly subordinated to the Hindu nation, claiming nothing,=20
deserving no privileges, far less any preferential treatment, not=20
even citizen rights.=94 (We or Our Nationhood Defined, 1947, pages=20
55-56). The latest RSS resolution justifies the post-Godhra pogrom of=20
Muslims as =93natural and spontaneous=94, and says the Supreme Court=20
order prohibiting a token shila pujan has =93grievously hurt=94 Hindu=20
sentiments.

The time has come for firm and exemplary action to stop such=20
provocative and inflammatory hate-speech, and even more important,=20
deter and punish hate-crimes of the kind that the VHP and Bajrang Dal=20
have been committing. The only option is to ban the Parishad and the=20
Dal. One says this in full recognition that banning such=20
organisations is not the only or the main remedy. The hatred they=20
concentrate within themselves may persist even after they are=20
proscribed.

However, banning them would be an effective way of delegitimising=20
their activities and their ideology. It would send a clear signal to=20
the bureaucracy that these groups are not to be indulged--as has=20
happened in Gujarat, where 62 people, all of them Muslims, have been=20
arrested for the Godhra carnage, under POTO, but not a single person=20
among the 800 arrested for the much worse butchery that followed has=20
been apprehended under it.

At the same time, the Opposition must not relent on demanding the=20
sacking of the Modi government. Its continuation has become totally=20
incompatible with even the Constitutional right to life guaranteed to=20
all citizens. The issues of banning the VHP-Bajrang Dal and sacking=20
Mr Modi will put the Vajpayee government on test. It must decide=20
whether it will indulge the likes of Mr Modi, Mr Ashok Singhal, the=20
lawless mahants of Ayodhya, and assorted communal thugs, and make a=20
mockery of the law and citizens=92 security; or whether it will uphold=20
Constitutional legality, equality of all citizens before the law, and=20
democratic decency.

As for the BJP=92s =93secular=94 allies, they must decide if the lure of=20
office, tainted with the blood of Indian citizens, will weigh more=20
with them than the NDA=92s own manifesto, considerations of democracy,=20
pluralism and secularism--and, ultimately, their own legitimacy. It=20
is high time the NDA allies confronted Hindutva forces on the=20
grotesque asthi (ashes) procession proposed by the VHP, and on POTO.=20
To deviously pass POTO in an illegitimate joint session of Parliament=20
would only create a potent communal weapon in today=92s inflamed=20
circumstances. Secularists must fight POTO tooth and nail.--end--

_______

#3.

>From Pervin Jehangir
Sent: Sunday, March 24, 2002 11:50 PM

People for Secular India i.e. a front of numerous democratic=20
organisations is holding a demonstration against the RSS resolution=20
that the safety of the minorities is dependant on the goodwill of the=20
majority.

Venue : Grant Rd. Stn. East [Bombay]
Time : 5.00 p.m.

on Wednesday the 27th of March 2002
Please come with appropriate placards.

Thanks.

______

#4.

BBC News
Sunday, 24 March, 2002, 17:37 GMT
Rights panel censures Gujarat

Gujarat: Widely criticised for not doing enough

India's human rights commission has criticised the government of the=20
western state of Gujarat for its "inefficiency" in controlling the=20
recent communal violence in the state.=20
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/south_asia/newsid_1891000/1891073.st=
m

_____

#5.

The Veiled Threat

by Ram Puniyani

RSS 'advise' to Muslims to behave is a veiled threat of sorts. Especially
this coming in the wake of the anti-Muslim pogroms in Gujarat is sure to
send the chills down the spine of this hapless community. It is being said
that 'they' are responsible for the Godhra crime and the Gujarat violence
is a spontaneous reaction to that. It must be made clear that perpetrators
of Godhra incident do not in any way 'represent' the Muslim community. The
false propaganda that Muslims did not condemn Godhra is again a blatant
lie as all those who matter from that community condemned it in no
uncertain terms. It is another matter that all such condemnations are
either ignored or not considered on purpose. To say that Muslims should
win the goodwill of the Hindu Majority is another way of saying that
Muslims must 'obey' the RSS else.

Surely Hindus as such have no ill will against the Muslim community.
Despite the bloody history of riots and the attempts to drive the wedge
between the Hindus and Muslim by RSS in particular, duly provoked by
Muslim fundamentalists, the large sections of Hindu community does not
view the Muslims with animosity. It is the Sangh Parivar, which has been
projecting Muslims as the incarnation of evil, agents of ISI and the one's
responsible for all the evil in this society. It is in keeping with its
Fascist politics that RSS has adopted this stance a la Hitler who targeted
first Jews, then Communists, then trade unionists and so on. In RSS
ideology Muslims are the first to be nailed, Christians the next, followed
by Communists and than the list can be expanded depending on the
contingencies of Hindutva politics.

At one level RSS must have realized that Ram Lalla will not be able to
collect the votes for its political offspring, the BJP. Now the search is
on for the new symbol around which emotive appeals can be triggered back
in to action to reap the dividends in the forthcoming Gujarat elections
and to sustain the power at the center, courtesy the alliance with power
hungry opportunist politicians like Fernadndes and Mamtas. Now while
realizing the limitations of the Ram Lalla, campaign one of the efforts is
to see whether the anti-Muslim violence can keep its (RSS clan's) spirits
going. Also realizing that the proposed Ram Temple is not going to come by
easily and some of the gullible, who came around to support it on that
issue, have to be given the explanation for the inability to build Ram
temple. Having failed to accomplish that by brute force, and mainly
because any such force would have destabilized the Govt. at center, now
the word is going around that Muslims are suffering because they have
failed to earn the goodwill of the majority community. So to win this
goodwill they should voluntarily give up their claims at the Babri mosque
and hand it over to the Sangh Parivar affiliate, the VHP. One knows they
just cannot get this site as easily through courts as they could demolish
it with the complicity of the State and central govt. So the new strategy
is to ask the battered community to 'win' the 'goodwill' of its tormentors
by giving up its claims. It is likely that after facing the violence, nay
genocide, some from that community may be willing to surrender anything to
buy peace and the so called goodwill. But surely even if Babri is
surrendered Kashi, Mathura and the 3000 or so Mosques will be demanded in
due course, as one knows the issue is not the temple or more temples but
the issue is to keep the communal cauldron hot to reverse the process of
social transformation, which took place in the first three decades of the
republic. The issue is to ensure that in the perennial production of
Hysterical atmosphere around the non-issues RSS can serve its agenda, the
agenda of maintaining status quo, the agenda of suppressing the quest for
social economic and political justice.

_____

#6.

Hindustan Times, Tuesday, March 26, 2002

Gujarat rioters did it by the book
Rathin Das
(Gandhinagar, March 25)

The Manual of rioting is back in circulation. Even as the Narendra=20
Modi government and the Gujarat Police talk about the "spontaneous"=20
nature of the riots that followed Godhra, the pattern of violence can=20
be found in guidelines laid down in a pro-Hindu booklet.

The booklet - Hinduno Bachao: Akraman ane Kayedo (Save Hindus:=20
Attacks and Laws) - first surfaced in Gujarat two years ago after the=20
withdrawal of an order that allowed government employees to=20
participate in RSS programmes.

The terror manual stated that an organised attack on minorities could=20
be made to look like a 'spontaneous' reaction by the public.

The primer illustrated how a crowd had beaten to death a boy and a=20
girl in Halvad town many years ago in full view of court officials,=20
but no one was prosecuted as thousands were involved.

The same pattern was followed in the post-Godhra violence in which=20
rioters escaped under the cover of anonymity.

Apart from guidelines on how to register complaints against=20
minorities for their 'Vidharmi' (non-believer) acts, the 12-page=20
booklet advised the Hindu 'samaj' to implicate senior missionaries in=20
false cases.

"They may not be convicted, but they should be made to go up and down=20
the courts for months..."

A Gujarat Police official said the recent mob attacks had some=20
similarities to the guidelines. "Prosecution can be made difficult by=20
increasing the number of the accused," he said. "Evidence is weakened=20
in such cases."

However, the joint general secretary of the state VHP, Kaushik Patel,=20
denied the booklet was issued by them. But he said the guidelines=20
were issued to the "Hindu samaj" at large and the VHP wasn't bothered=20
by it. But naturally.

The mob's manual

* Pro-Hindu booklet says an attack on minorities can be made to=20
look like a 'spontaneous' reaction
* Missionaries must be implicated in cooked up charges
* Booklet illustrates how a large mob can get away with murder=20
even if committed publicly
* "Now that we have our own government, we should take proper=20
advantage of it and get our work done by it," it states

_____

#7.

Deccan Chronicle, Monday, March 25, 2002

Pro-VHP man to probe carnage

Ahmedabad, March 24: The VHP has prevailed upon the Narendra Modi=20
government to appoint an officer of its choice to probe two heinous=20
violence cases in Ahmedabad - former Congress MP Ehsaan Jaffrey's=20
murder and butchering of 59 labourers at Naroda.

The Gujarat police is distressed with the VHP functioning as a=20
parallel authority and deciding which officers its wants for probe=20
into violence. Despite a strong representation from a section of the=20
Gujarat police that the Gulbarg Society killings and the Naroda=20
massacre need a proper investigation, the Narendra Modi government=20
has appointed an officer of the VHP's choice to conduct the probe.

Top government sources told The Asian Age on Sunday that the VHP=20
managed to get assistant commissioner of police P.N. Barot appointed=20
for the probe. Incidentally, both the cases do not fall under the=20
jurisdiction of Mr Barot, who is well known for his VHP connection.

Barot is actually in charge of Ahmedabad's B-division and the Gulbarg=20
Society and Naroda Patia fall under the G-division.

ACP M T Rana, under whose jurisdiction these areas fall, has named=20
the VHP and the BJP activists in the FIRs and has expressed his=20
displeasure that an outside officer was sent to intervene. VHP leader=20
Jaideep Patel and BJP Ahmedabad president and MLA Maya Kodnani have=20
been named in the FIRs in these two cases.=20

Instead of letting Rana handle the case, the Gujarat government has=20
asked Barot to investigate. A top VHP functionary admitted to The=20
Asian Age that "Barot is our man.=20

There is a lot of ambiguity about the Ehsaan Jaffrey massacre and the=20
Naroda case. Jaffrey and others were torched to death only after he=20
instigated Hindus and fired in the air to scare them.

He and others gathered in his house clapped and called Hindus=20
eunuchs. He instigated the crowd but nobody knows this. We expect=20
Barot to bring out the truth."

The VHP insists that only Barot would be able to investigate the two=20
incidents. Ironically, in Barot's own areas there are over 52 cases=20
of rioting, arson and loot and he has not made a single arrest.=20
Besides the B-division, Barot also has the charge of the A-division=20
at the moment and senior police officials feel that he is too=20
overloaded to undertake any other investigation.

A top police officer, who has expressed his displeasure at the=20
government's decision, said, "If the government did not want the=20
local police to investigate it could have shifted the investigations=20
to the crime branch or the CID. Still, under pressure from the VHP,=20
the home department has decided to let Barot investigate the massacre=20
cases."

When contacted, Barot said that he has already begun investigations.=20
Admitting that names of the BJP and the VHP activists figure in the=20
FIRs, he said, "I am still to ascertain the reality. My=20
investigations are on."

When told that there were over two dozen names in the FIRs of the=20
Sangh Parivar activists, he quipped, "Investigations are on. I cannot=20
arrest anyone without ascertaining the reality."

_____

#8.

ARCH -VAHINI REPORT
Eye Witness Account of Looting and Burning in Kanwat [Gujarat]

I the undersigned Mr. Rajesh Mishra son of Shri Jagdambaprasad A.=20
Mishra presently residing and working with Non Governmental=20
Organization (NGO) ARCH Vahini at village Mangrol Taluka Rajpipla=20
Dist. Narmada affirm on oath that:
1. I was present at my native village Kawant Ta. Kawant Dist.=20
Vadodara of Gujarat state between March 10/03/02 and 18/03/02.
2. On 12/03/02 and on 13/03/02 in Kawant more than 250 houses and=20
shop establishments of Muslims including Bohra community were looted=20
and then set on fire by mobs of tribal of surrounding villages. Most=20
of the Houses belonging to Muslims have been totally destroyed and=20
their business is completely ruined. There were 185 Muslim and 52=20
Bohra households living and conducting their business in Kawant.
3. Even elders cannot recall when and from where the Muslims came and=20
settled into this interior village Kawant. Some of them had their=20
traditional businesses like cycle selling & repairing - automobile=20
garages, fruit vending, grocery shops, poultry and goat farming etc.=20
Some of the Muslims were also engaged in services in shops and=20
business of other trading communities of the village. For the last=20
few years some of them were diversifying into new enterprises like=20
building construction, contractors, building material supplier, rural=20
transport business with tempos and jeeps, second hand vehicles=20
trading etc.
4. All the 185 Muslim households have lost all of their belongings.=20
Their houses and business premises have been looted, burnt and=20
destroyed. Out of 185 households, 38 had pucca RCC structures and the=20
rest were Kachcha structures. They have lost their property=20
approximately worth Rs 3.50 crores in their shops, garages, cabins=20
and lorries and vehicles. They are homeless and have become paupers=20
taking shelter in Vadodara and Chhotaudepur with relatives and Muslim=20
Jamatkhanas.
5. 52 Bohra community households were mainly well to do traders of=20
Kawant. They were also settled in Kawant for more than 100 years and=20
had developed business in varied sphere and on bigger scale. Besides=20
their traditional business of wholesale grain trade and grocery=20
shops, the bakery -printing press-soft drink manufacturing -rural=20
transport business were some of the new areas where the enterprising=20
Bohra had stepped in for the last 2-3 years. Even by very=20
conservative estimate they have lost property worth Rs. 7 to 8 crores.
6. From 1st March onwards Muslims were receiving threats and=20
threatening calls from various sources which had made them tense=20
anxious. They were constantly requesting the local administration the=20
Mamlatdar and police authority to provide protection. As the tension=20
mounted, they also demanded deployment of Border Security Force (BSF)=20
or Rapid Action Force (RAF) or State Reserve Police (SRP) in adequate=20
numbers.
7. Their fears were not unfounded for the Sarpanch and other village=20
leaders had cancelled the traditional weakly market Hat scheduled for=20
4/03/02 and on 11/03/02. Canceling of Hat was most unusual and extra=20
ordinary decision because Hats are almost never cancelled. This=20
indicated gravity of the situation and the danger loomed large over=20
the law and order situation and the target was obviously the Muslim=20
community.
8. The local MLA of Chhotaudepur confided into me personally that for=20
that whole week he was pressurizing and persuading the district=20
administration to employ BSF/RAF or SRP personal (minimum 40-50) in=20
number at Kawant. He even informed the Home Secretary and the DIG of=20
the State of the looming threat. But the administration did not=20
respond to the requests.
9. On 10/03/02, in a nearby village Panwad, 12 KM from Kawant, the=20
houses, shops and cabins of Muslim community were looted and set on=20
fire by mobs from the surrounding villages. Prior to looting and=20
setting fire to the houses and other establishments, the mobs had set=20
on fire the tempo trucks that were parked inside the police station=20
campus for safety and security. The incident took place on the very=20
day on which the SRP and the BSF forces were withdrawn from Panwad.
10. As the report of incidents in Panwad reached Kawant, the Muslims=20
desperately urged the local administration to provide them security=20
or else they would be ruined and their life was in grave danger.
11. The Muslims in Kawant received this report and they panicked=20
because they knew that it was their turn next for the stories were=20
constantly pouring in from all the sides during the past ten days=20
that the mobs would first do Panwad then it will be the turn of=20
Kawant. I called the District Collector on the same day and informed=20
him that prior to final attack on Panwad the tribal were constantly=20
threatening that Panwad would be the first followed by Kawant. The=20
local BJP leader, who was trying to keep peace in Kawant, had also=20
sensed the great trouble. He was also constantly imploring the=20
District Collector and the Police authority to provide adequate=20
police BSF protect to Kawant to avoid great tragedy that could=20
overtake Kawant.
12. In the next two days, I made several calls to the Collector and=20
the DSP and pleaded with them to provide security to Muslims and=20
Bohras of Kawant. I constantly argued with them to deploy BSF/RAF/SRP=20
in Kawant.
13. All that district administration had done before this was to=20
organize flag march of the security forces in Kawant. I argued out of=20
desperation that it was not useful. Kawant is an interior village.=20
The Hindu community of Kawant was not threatening the Muslims. In=20
fact, the Hindus also wanted security forces because the fear was=20
from the mobs from the surrounding villages. The administration=20
claimed that they had limited army personnel. I was informed that=20
there were 106 Jawans at their disposal for the area. If so, I argued=20
that they should be divided in three parts and take positions in=20
three sensitive localities, Chhotaudepur, Panwad and Kanwat. I even=20
argued that since Chhotaudepur was a bigger town, may be Kanwat and=20
Panwad may be assigned 20-24 Jawans along with thirty SRP. A flag=20
march lasting for tent to thirty minutes without a constant presence=20
of the Jawans would serve no purpose, I kept on arguing. My pleadings=20
along with the pleadings of the other leaders fell on deaf ears.
14. On 11/03/02, I contacted the regional in charge of National Human=20
Rights Commission Mr. Nambuthiri in Ahmedabad through Mr. Gagan=20
Shethi of Jan Vikas, Ahmedabad and urged him to intervene and impress=20
upon the administration to deploy enough force at Kawant to provide=20
protection to Muslims and Bohra community. The Jan Vikas office=20
informed that Mr. Nambuthiri had contacted DSP Vadodara and had=20
discussed the matter with him. The office then informed me that I=20
should contact the DSP Vadodara and discuss with him about deploying=20
BSF/SRP forces in Kawant immediately that I had suggested to him.=20
Following this I contacted the DSP office and discussed with him the=20
above suggestion and also other suggestions about making preventive=20
detentions and imposing curfew.
15. On the same day I also contact my senior collogue Dr. Anil Patel=20
at our headquarters at Mangrol, Rajpipla. I requested him to contact=20
Congress M.P. Mr. Madhusudan Mistry at New Delhi and ask him to=20
intervene. Dr. Anil Patel contacted Mr. Mistry who in turn=20
immediately contacted the State DIG and the Chief Secretary of the=20
State and asked them to deploy effective force in Kawant.
16. I contacted the MLA of our region and he too took up the matter=20
once again with the Chief Secretary and the DIG.
17. I then contacted a senior and reputed journalist of Gujarat Mr.=20
Digant Oza over phone. He then approached Chief Secretary's office=20
but since the Chief Secretary was not present in the office he left=20
urgent massage with his personal secretary to bring to attention of=20
the CS about the Kawant situation and act immediately.=20
18. Rohit Prajapati and Trupti of Vadodara Kamdar Union based in=20
Vadodara were also continuously interacting with the district=20
administration since 10th March 2002 for deploying effective force at=20
Kawant and were also representing that police was not handling the=20
Kawant situation effectively.
19. Army unit did not arrived till the night of 11th March.=20
Therefore, in the early morning of 12/02/03 at 3.30am, 135 household=20
consisting 990 people of Muslim community were shifted under police=20
protection. On the same day, Bohra Muslims families took shelter in=20
the Kawant Police station in the after noon and later on in the late=20
night these families too were shifted under police protection from=20
Kawant to Dahod town of Gujarat. They left their houses and property=20
exposed.
20. On the Morning of March 12th 2002, Mr. Rohit Prajapati informed=20
me that an army platoon had left for Kawant and would reach Kawant=20
anytime and that it would stay put up to March 16th 2002. The army=20
unit did arrive on March 12th in the morning, staged flag march and=20
left in about thirty minutes. While the army was conducting flag=20
march, I was told by one of the traders that soon after the march was=20
over the unit would leave. I panicked and called the District=20
Collector and informed him about this. He seemed surprised and said,=20
"this should not happen, I will call the DSP." It is a fact that the=20
unit did leave. Later, I also sent a fax message to the Collector and=20
the DSP that the army had left and the people and property were left=20
exposed.
21. The property of Muslims and Bohras was looted in the daylight of 12th a=
nd
13th of March. The police was merely a spectator. It was not that the=20
mob was violent, it was unarmed and consisted of young children and=20
women, but the fact was that the police had not taken any action to=20
prevent the mob from looting and the administration had not deployed=20
enough force. Even the simple measure like teargas or firing in the=20
air were not resorted to by the police to prevent the mob from=20
looting and setting fire to Muslim and Bohra's property.
22. On 13th March 2002, the looting and burning spree started from=20
early morning and went on till late afternoon. Suddenly at about 3.15=20
PM Police imposed Curfew and with in minutes it drove away the=20
looting mobs. I was wondering why the police did not act in this=20
manner the previous day and that day. Within an hour the mystery was=20
solved and we came to know that the Collector and the DSP were=20
visiting Kawant. I was asked to see the Collector. I went and told=20
him that if the administration was willing to bring the situation=20
under control and protect the Muslims and Bohras of Kawant, it could=20
have easily done so.=20=20=20
23. The circumstances under which the Muslims and Bohras had to flee=20
and their properties were looted and burnt, the panicked communities=20
is not likely to return to Kanwat for a considerable time period and=20
when they return it is imperative that a sizeable SRP force has to be=20
stationed in Kanwat for a fairly long period. It is also imperative=20
that the communities which lost all its properties should be=20
appropriately compensated so that they can restart their lives.
ARCH - VAHINI
AT&PO. MANGROL
TA.& DIST. RAJPIPLA 393150 GUJARAT INDIA
Phone :02640 50140 ,50154

______

#9.

The Hindu
Tuesday, Mar 26, 2002
Open Page

A letter to chachaji about the Gujarat riots
[by Raju]
http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/op/stories/2002032600030100.htm

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