Were the Gujarat Riot's Manipulated by the Government?

The Gujarat riots are known by many with different opinions and perspectives on it. From misinformation to political disputes to some extent manipulated by the state are the viewpoints of many.

The Gujarat riots today is known as “India's worst outbreaks of violence in decades” More than 1,000 people (mostly Muslims) died in the riots. This began after 60 Hindu pilgrims and karsevaks died in a train fire, which was blamed on Muslims, in the town of Godhra. This train was returning from Ayodhya. This was a three-day period of inter-communal violence in the western Indian state of Gujarat.

Though the 2002 events were officially categorised as a communalist riot, several experts have referred to them as a pogrom. Some critics have claimed that the attacks were intentional and that the raid on the train served as a "planned trigger" for the actual intended violence. Other observers have claimed that these actions met the "legal definition of genocide" or have labelled them ethnic cleansing or acts of state terrorism.

An article published by “The Times Of India” said that an argument erupted between the train passengers and the vendors on the railway platform which occurred. The argument became violent and under uncertain circumstances, four coaches of the train caught fire with many people trapped inside. However, In 2003, The Concerned Citizens Tribunal (CCT) concluded that the fire had been an accident. Several other independent commentators have also concluded that the fire itself was almost certainly an accident, saying that the initial cause of the conflagration has never been conclusively determined

In the time period of 1974-1980, other issues preoccupied the Gujarati society. The 1981 anti- reservation agitation, a reaction to the KHAM policy adopted by the ruling Congress at the time, was re-channelised into a major communal conflagration, in a shrewd bid to check the sharp polarisation taking place among Hindus along the caste line. The focus of the antagonistic political uprising of the higher castes, which descended into violence, was the subject of reservation quotas for underprivileged castes and communities.

As caste violence served the manipulative objective of deflecting attention away from the widening divide within caste-Hindu society, communal riots between Hindus and Muslims now started to follow on the heels of it. The caste conflict in Gujarat coincided, fortunately for the caste-Hindus, with the founding of the VHP and the Bajrang Dal shortly after. These RSS organisations were created with a specific goal in mind: to win over the "lower" castes with a "Hindu unity" programme.

The Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) demanded a statewide bandh or strike in response to the train attack. The state did nothing to stop the strike, despite the fact that the Supreme Court had ruled such strikes to be illegal and unconstitutional and despite the frequent occurrence of violence after such strikes. The early escalation of violence in the state was not attempted to be stopped by the government. According to conflicting rumours and accusations, Rana Rajendrasinh, the state's BJP president, supported the walkout, and Modi and Rana employed aggressive language that made matters worse.

Due to so many allegations and controversies on this incident, many also believed that Pakistani’s were sent to Gujarat to execute this train burning. Even Hindu attackers arrived in Muslim communities on the 28th of Feb across the region in trucks, wearing saffron robes and khaki shorts, bearing a variety of weapons. In many cases, attackers damaged or burned Muslim-owned or occupied buildings while leaving adjacent Hindu buildings untouched. Although many calls to the police were made by victims, they were told by the police that "we have no orders to save you." In some cases, the police fired on Muslims who attempted to defend themselves.

Image by The New York Times on the Gujarat Riots