How only four cops saved 1,200 Muslim lives during Gujarat riots

When the Gujarat police are largely blamed for going slow on rioters or not acting against them during the height of 2002 riots, here is an incident where only a handful of officers had showed their determination and courage to save the life of as many as 1,200 Muslims.

Only four officers acted swiftly and stood between an angry Hindu mob and these vulnerable people, thereby averting a massacre that could have been much larger than Naroda Patia or Gulbarg.

On March 2, 2002, police had information that an angry Hindu mob was planning a large number of Muslims in Ginjar village of Kheda district. The village is dominated by Muslims. The team that saved the life of so many people included an IG, a DySP, a PI and a PSI.

That day, Kuldeep Sharma, who was then IG (Ahmedabad Range),  was informed by one of his SPs that a group of people had been cornered by a mob in Ginjar village. "It was also communicated that a sub inspector had reached there but he was short of ammunition as had he fired several rounds in the air to disperse the mob," a police source told DNA.

The PSI, however, managed to inform his seniors about the situation and eventually Sharma was informed. Sharma, who was travelling in Ahmedabad rural area, took a DySP and a PI with him and headed towards the spot. Meanwhile, Sharma was also informed by a local resident that mob had planned a massacre at Ginjar.

When the police team started heading towards Ginjar village, they found that the road to the village had been blocked with trees cut down from the roadside. "The team then reached the spot via kaccha road in jeeps," sources said.  

The officers had to open fire several rounds at the mob to break it. After struggling for a few hours, they finally managed to disperse the mob of around 10,000 people and saved the Muslims.  

Later, the police shifted these 1,200 Muslims to a school in Kheda town and deployed police for their security.