The mood among Gujaratis from both the communities swings between anger and helplessness to indifference and tolerance.
A decade after the Gujarat riots, the mood among Gujaratis from both the communities swings between anger and helplessness to indifference and tolerance.
“The horrific events of the riots are etched in our memories, but the Muslims in the state want to forget them and march ahead. However, they are still not in a mood to forgive the perpetrators,” said Rafat Quadri, editor of Bilkul, an English fortnightly in Ahmedabad.
At the receiving end of the criticism is Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi who most people believe was “responsible for orchestrating the riots”. “It is unfortunate that Modi did not pay the price for presiding over the bloodbath. In fact, he won the state election with a huge margin and began his second term as chief minister,” said Mumbai-based activist Jatin Desai who works for communal harmony. He adds that though Modi successfully used religious polarisation as a political technique, there is no “persecutable evidence” against him.
Lamenting that justice has eluded the victims and their families even after a decade, civil liberties activist Prakash Shah says the riots were a shameful violation of human rights. “Modi has created a fear psychosis in the minds of some people and sympathy in the hearts of others,” he said.
Meanwhile, Dongri resident Farida Begum refuses to hold just one person responsible for the riots. “Friends and neighbours turned against each other in the name of religion. I still can’t understand how people can shed the blood of those they grew up with,” said the mother of two who lost her brother and his family in the carnage.
As stories of the pogrom are shared in heart-wrenching detail by victims and survivors, what emerges is a hope for a more tolerant and secular society. “We have seen the worst of communal hatred and violence. Hopefully, both the communities would not want a repeat act,” says Sewri-based Nasrullah Shaikh who asked his cousin’s family to move to Mumbai after they lost their home and kite-making shop in the riots.
“The need of the hour is to develop a platform of all concerned citizens and organisations to combat fascist onslaught and move forward with a democratic movement,” said Ahmedabad-based activist Gautam Thaker.
(Some names have been changed to protect privacy)
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