Frontline

July 2000
Newscan


Caste clashes bloody Bihar again

The killing fields of Bihar were witness to one of the worst ever caste massacres in the state’s bloody history on June 16, when an armed squad of the outlawed Ranvir Sena, sponsored by the upper castes, butchered 35 persons, mostly women and children, in Miapur village in Aurangabad district. The ‘operation’ left another 10 persons in critical conditions. After the massacre, the heavily–armed assailants had a brief encounter with policemen posted at two pickets in the area before escaping. The carnage sent shock waves through the nation, provoking from demands from anti–Laloo Yadav forces that the Centre immediately dismiss the state government led by Yadav’s wife, Rabri Devi. The killing was suspected to be in retaliation for the March 99 carnage at Senari, a village just three–four kilometres away from Miapur, in which 32 persons, all belonging to a particular upper caste were done to death. Since then, the police had identified Miapur as a vulnerable target and kept a constant vigil on this Yadav dominated village. The outlawed naxal group, Maoist Communist Centre, as behind the Senari carnage. The injured victims claimed that the marauders had shouted slogans like "Senari ka badla le liya" ("We have avenged the Senari killings") as they left the village. In turn, following the June 16 massacre, the naxalites vowed swift retaliatory action. Earlier in the same month, nearly 100 armed men dressed as police commandos gunned down 12 members of an upper caste family in Asharfi village in Navada district. "Ek ke badle ek darjan ko marenge" ("We will kill one dozen to avenge the death of each of our people killed"), the commandos had declared. The carnage was an obvious retaliation to the earlier killing of five Yadavs.

Nepal in grip of ISI virus

If the frequent statements of Union home minister and unsourced media reports are to be believed, the long arm of Pakistan’s nefarious ISI reaches everywhere. A recent ‘exclusive’ report in India Today has identified Nepal as the ISI’s latest training field for anti-India crimes and madrassas along the border as conduits for an identifiable brand of Islam that fires many into disruptive crime. The authenticity of this and other reports quoted in many sections of the media need to be verified, and the time has come for the country to be put in the know about the extent of ISI activities with authenticated data. If brides in Rajasthan’s border districts are disguised ISI agents, or if teachers in Jammu and Kashmir are training recruits for the same agency, as different sections of our media would have us believe, every citizen of India has a right to know the veracity of these ‘leaks.’ It is long overdue that the Indian government releases a white paper on ISI activities to enable a healthy and open debate on the issue and to prevent the discourse to deteriorate into jingoism and crude communal abuse. The rabid elements of the saffron brigade, whether it is Bal Thackeray of the Shiv Sena or the Bajrang Dal and the VHP, are threatening to take the law in their own hands: anti–Muslim venom is once again being spread, while the Bajrang Dal is openly giving arms training to cadre, ostensibly to take on the ISI. These are enough warning signals that the government must act and act quickly.

Animal sacrifice causes bad blood

For the last few weeks, tension has been brewing within the 1.5 lakh-strong Mali community of Vadodara over the issue of animal sacrifice. The Gujarat Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (GSPCA), backed by a minority from within the Mali community, wants an end to the practice of ritual sacrifice. They are urging the police to use the Gujarat Animal and Bird Sacrifices (Prevention) Act, 1972 and the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act (PCAA), 1960 for the purpose. But the majority among the Malis are determined to fight any interference with their age-old ritual. Those protesting the ritual sacrifice claim that religion is being used as a mere excuse by those who frequently slaughter animals for "gluttony" and for all kinds of celebrations. Those foe the continuance of the practice claim it is part of Mali belief that goats be sacrificed to the deity to keep many problems – ill–health, family disputes, business–related matters — at bay. The law as it stands in Gujarat today, prohibits slaughter of animals outside the officially–approved slaughterhouses except in case of ritual sacrifice, provided the animal is sacrificed behind four walls and not at a temple or other public place. The trouble started when the GSPCA members lodged complaints with the police and a couple of houses were raided to prevent the sacrifice of goats. Following strong protests from the established leaders of the Mali community, Vadodara’s police commissioner, J Mahapatra, has directed all police stations under his jurisdiction not to entertain any offence about animal sacrifice, not even "under pressure from any organisation". "Ninety five per cent Malis believe in sacrifice. We do it within four walls. No one can thrust their belief on us", warns Kalidas Mali, a former Congress councillor from within the community.

A rathyarta Muslims happily join

Bhubaneswar, June 21: The annual Rath Yatra in Orissa has always been perceived as a Hindu affair. But the Muslim residents of Narayanpur, a village of about 1,000 families in the Subarnapur district, are gearing up to participate in the festival, starting on 3 July, in a big way. "We are not celebrating the festival for the first time. Each year, we involve ourselves in the festival, starting from the construction of the chariots to the pulling of the rath," said Mr Gulam Mohammed, a shopowner.

Narayanpur has people from varied social and religious backgrounds — upper and lower caste Hindus, tribals and Muslims. The village is economically backward and most families fall below the poverty line. Yet, it is an example of religious harmony. The village has a temple and a mosque, located close to each other. Hindus and Muslims participate in each other’s festivals and rituals. "Most of the people are Muslims but we never felt that people for another community live here," Mr Ananda Satapathy, the Hindu village council chief, said.

The Hindus help the Muslims repair their mosque and attend Islamic religious functions. "Hindus enter the mosque and Muslims, the temple," said one villager. "Last year, all the Muslim youths collected funds for the Rath Yatra. This year also, they are taking the lead," he said.

"We want this year to be no different," said Mr Mohammed, who is playing a key role in preparations. "Our work spreads a good message to the neighbouring villages," he said.

(Courtesy: India Abroad News Service).

Coimbatore police partisan: Commission

Muslim fundamentalist groups like Al Umma and the Jihad Committee have been identified as the main culprits behind the Coimbatore serial bomb blasts that shook the southern textile town in February 1998, narrowly missing Union home minister, LK Advani one of the main targets. But the bomb blasts were a definite retaliation for the killings in police firings of Muslims during the three day long communal frenzy of November–December 1997.

These are some of the findings of the Justice Gokulakrishnan Inquiry Commission, appointed to probe the Coimbatore serial blasts of February 14, 1998. The report was tabled before the Tamil Nadu state assembly in late May.

The commission is unsparing in its comments about outfits like Al Umma and the Jihad Committee which "are in the habit of taking law into their own hands and arousing the fanaticism of young Muslims". But it is also clear in its conclusion that the serial bomb blasts that killed 50 and injured 200 could easily have been prevented if the police had been vigilant and their surveillance active.

The commission held that the ‘virulent and vituperative’ speeches of both Hindu and Muslim fundamentalist groups were directly responsible for the communal murders in Coimbatore. Among the Hindu communal outfits named by the commission are the Hindu Munnani, Hindu Makkal Katchi, RSS, Shiv Sena while the Muslim communal groups identified include the Al Umma, Jihad Committee, Tamil Nadu Muslim Munnetra Kazhagam (TNMMK). The commission has directly called upon the police to ‘strictly monitor’ the speeches of the leaders of all these organisations and take speedy action against them.

Other significant observations of the commission relate to the partisan behaviour of the police force. The brutal violence that rocked Coimbatore in November–December 1997 was specifically coloured by the blatantly partisan conduct of the law and order machinery (see CC, February 1998). Hence, apart from recommending that a unit of the Rapid Action Force should permanently be stationed at Coimbatore, the commission has warned that a strict code of conduct must be enforced to regulate the behaviour of the police. The police force should not be "packed with any particular religious/caste/linguistic groups" the commission has warned.

Since the Tamil Nadu government has accepted the recommendations of the commission in principle, it is to be hoped that the serious comments on the repercussions on the law and order machinery are accepted, and implemented. The experience of Coimbatore reflects a nation–wide pattern of bias within the police forces, a trend that needs speedy correction.

 


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