(Gujarati) dailies always played into the hands of the vocal majority. Gujarati Samachar - a well-established and largely circulated daily - has been always known for taking sides. So much so that during the communal riots this daily's report came under severe ... criticism by the Press Council of India. Of late (it) has been constantly fanning communal feeling and fire of the majority. "The role played by this daily should be checked", said a senior police officer
What the DGP Says
The Director General of Police, Mr. Singh, is known for his uprightness and frankness. " The police force in Gujarat is (not) communal, now at least. There may be some ... but I've made it very clear at the MLA's meetings that we are an independent force and give no weightage to communal feelings" ... On the Bible incident in Rajkot, ... on my immediate order, six persons were nabbed. We don't care ... what group they belong to. They may be of Bajrang Dal or VHP ... whatever they may be, we'll not leave them".
Mr. Singh also spoke at length on the Randhirpur incident, in which a large section of the Muslim community had to leave the village. He also explained how an erring PS or PSI was immediately transferred. "We'll not spare the culprits", he asserted, "nor tolerate any group taking law and order into its hands".
Meanwhile, ex-chief minister Mr. Amarsinghji Chaudhary gave a 32-point memorandum to the Gujarat Governor and strongly demanded the immediate dismissal of the communal government of the BJP.
What the Ahmedabad Bishop says
The Jesuit Bishop of Ahmedabad, Dr. Stanislaus Fernandez, says: "With great dismay I see that such incidents happen in the peace-loving state of Gujarat. There is a sense of frustration among us ... some of our works of love and charity are given different colours and thereby we are put in defensive position. In the name of religion or Indian culture they find us `anti' and singled us out. Our places of worship are attacked and simple people are harassed and terrorised. A definite group is out to denigrate us. We do social service. We expect at least goodwill. Instead, our people suffer now. We are peace-loving people. In what way we are not Indians?
The sickly Bishop spoke with ... confidence and belief. He looked disturbed. (Source: The Indian Currents, 24-30 August, 1998)
It is unfortunate that Mahatma Gandhi is murdered daily in Gujarat by the fascist actions of the VHP and Bajrang Dal. They made intercaste marriages the biggest sin. I feel we are back to a barbaric age. - Irshad Mirza, former Congress Rajya Sabha MP
Shahabuddin's Letter to Home Minister, 29 July, 1998
The Indian Express, New Delhi, has reported today (29 July, 1998) how the VHP-Bajrang Dal activists terrorised the Muslim community - about 500 persons in village Randhikpur Sanjeli, (PS Limkheda) Central Gujarat to flee and to seek shelter elsewhere. Their houses have been burnt and property looted. The local magistracy and police far from coming to the rescue of the Muslim community, have detained and beaten up complainants, including a Jawan of the CRPF, on leave, extended support to the local terrorists and prevented photographers and pressmen from entering the area. I request your immediate intervention so that the Government of Gujarat detain and prosecute the trouble- makers and establishes conditions in which the Muslim families may return to their homes in safety.
India Today On VHP's Assault Christians & Muslims
In the five months that the Keshubhai Patel Government has been in power in Gujarat, clashes between the VHP and the minority communities have registered an alarming increase. Emboldened by the BJP's comeback, fanatics among the Sangh Parivar have gone on the offensive, crossing limits at least in some cases. The growing communal tension - over a dozen incidents of clashes between Hindus and Muslims and Hindus and Christians, besides VHP attacks on the minority groups - threatens to tarnish the image of the Patel Government. ...
To justify its condemnable methods of settling scores, the VHP charges Muslims and Christian missionaries of pursuing their conversion activities aggressively ...(Source: The India Today, 10 August, 1998)
Voices
When I was the chief minister, similar attempts were made but I instructed removal of such boards and hoardings. It is illegal to categorise any place as belonging to Hindu Rashtra. I have drawn the attention of the police in Mehsana when I saw one such board recently. The BJP's silence clearly indicates that it is hand-in-glove with those putting up such boards" - Shankarsinh Vaghela, RJP President
I am simply shocked at the fascism unleashed by the VHP and Bajrang Dal. This is an indication of future trouble and the BJP will have to bear the brunt. If we call ourselves a secular country why sing paeans to Hindutva? This fascism of BJP will prove suicidal for the party.
- Vishnu Pandya, General Secretary, Rashtriya Janata Dal
Hindu Rashtra in Action Rathan Das's Report
Half a century after independence, 59 terrified families of the minority Muslim community of this remote village had to give up their homeland and livestock and flee to a temporary shelter in a town 32 km away, for no fault of theirs. Their terror began after two boys of their community (and) two girls of the majority community ... eloped.
Subsequently VHP and Bajrang Dal leaders issued a 48- hour ultimatum asking them to trace the two girls or quite the village.
The families comprising 350 men, women and children fled ... soon after leaving behind their ... means of livelihood. They are now living at the mercy of their relatives in Devgarh Baria ... in the same district Dohad.
They are scared to return to the village as the VHP and the Bajrang Dal are adamant that the girls be found before the migrants are allowed to return.
A peace meeting held in the first week of July with the DSP and the Dt. Collector present failed. The ... migrants wee told that they could return but would have to stay together in one house, "if the police were to provide them protection". The proposal was obviously rejected.
"They threatened to kill us if we did not vacate the village in 48 hours", 45-year-old Adam Ismail recounted. Currently ... working as daily wager (he) was forced to leave his land, a buffalo and eight goats, his house has been burnt down. Although eager to return, he fears for his life.
On the surface there seemed to be no sign of tension now in this village in the tribal Limkheda taluk. But the undercurrent of tension exists ... As one enters the village ... a painted tin signboard greets visitors with the announcement "Vishwa Hindu Parishad welcomes you to Hindu Rashtra's village ... " the next minute a villager approached the car and demanded the correspondent's identity card ... He added that it was risky to go to the village without being escorted by either the Bajrang Dal or the police.
At the police station, the circle police inspector said there was no tension in the village. Asked why nearly 60 families had to run away overnight. Inspector R.M. Bhabhor said that it was out of the fear of ... interrogation .. for the alleged "kidnapping" ... The police version ...was backed by the gram panchayat Sarpanch (BJP) ... The victims, however, said that VHP and Bajrang Dal leaders Mitesh Bhatt and Sailesh Bhatt, former sarpanch, had threatened them ... The half burnt wooden pillars, collapsed roofs of houses, burnt mattresses, strewn household goods and empty cattle sheds just behind the police chowki ... are only g.in reminders of a manmade disaster that hit a minority community ... The 60-odd families of "Ghanchi" Muslims, a backward community making a living out of rearing and selling livestock ... The village police seems to favour the Hindu militants ... The fact that the two couples were adults and their marriage legally valid was accorded no importance.
Nevertheless, under pressure from the police and the VHP, the migrants have already spent more than Rs.15,000 in their attempts to locate the couples ...
"The idea was to somehow hand over the boys so that the rest of the community could return to the village safely and live in peace", said Ismail Yusuf, 37, who works as a coolie in Devgarh Baria. He is worried about his maize and tuwer (pulse) crop standing on four acres of land. "Any more delay in returning to the fields would mean the loss of this season's crop", Ismail said.
Unable to trace the boys the migrants caught the fathers of these boys ... handed them over to the police. The police kept them in the lock-up for nearly a week before releasing them as no charges could be framed against them. The migrants said that they had no other option as ... the only way to buy peace with the Hindu militants. The police also arrested the two men to appease the VHP and Bajrang Dal activists. ... Bohra shop owner (said) confidently, "I have no problem because we have nothing to do with those Muslims." Ample proof that the Sangh Parivar now has its quota of Sikander Bakhts in the villages too. (Source: The Indian Express, 3-5 August, 1998)
Swagatam to Hindu Rashtra 12000 Villages & 350 Localities in Gujarat
Deepal Trevedie's Report
Whether Wadaj or Vejalpur known localities in Ahmedabad or Tansa and Tarsamiya, ... two nondescript villages in Bhavnagar district ... an outsider coming to these places, the message that greets is not of customary "Welcome" ... Instead it simply says: Hindu Rashtra nu Wadaj Nagar (Hindu Rashtra's Wadaj). In extreme cases, some boards even go to the extent of screaming in a cliched advertorial manner. "This village is proud to be a part of the Hindu Rashtra". Such boards, interestingly, are spotted more in Muslim-dominated areas
Signboards have come up in Gujarat reminding the people that they now reside in a Hindu Rashtra. Obviously, Muslims and Christians in Gujarat are shell-shocked at this blatant display of Hindutva and construe it as a sequel to the 23-old attacks on minorities. The boards have been put up by the VHP and Bajrang Dal. According to sources, such boards have come up in at least 12,000 villages in Gujarat, besides over 350 localities in Ahmedabad, Baroda, Surat, Rajkot, Jamnagar and Bhavnagar.
The VHP says the signboards do not violate any laws. While the state head, Pravin Togadiya, was not available to comment, an office-bearer admitted that it was the VHP which had put up the boards with help of Bajrang Dal. "What's wrong in it? (Aren't boards ...welcoming guests ... put up by the Lions Club ... Are we living in USA, not Hindustan?
The police and local administration - which in fact can act on its own and initiate action - is waiting for official complaints to be registered. "With the BJP ruling both at Centre and state, no policeman can afford to be reactive. It is a very sensitive issue", a senior police officer says. The silence on this supposedly sensitive issue is frustrating the minorities. What is more frustrating is the stoic silence of the minority leaders ...
... Congress spokesman Hasmukh Patel says the party cannot just launch a movement to remove the boards on its own for it could lead to scuffles and ultimately communal flare-ups. "We will be doing something concrete soon", asserts RJP's Shankarsinh Vaghela. Till then ... thousands ... have to continue to live ... and endorse the VHP's idea of a Hindu Rashtra. (Source: The Asian Age)
Manas Dasgupta on Hindu Fundamentalist Upsurge
The (Gujarat) government's failure to check the uprising by Hindu militants (has) caused a sense of insecurity among the minorities ...
Senior Home department officials feel concerned over the developments ... and though they rule out any "government protection" to the "guilty" ... The people in power have a "soft corner" for the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and other frontal organisations.
The public statement by the Director-General of Police, Mr.C.P. Singh, admitting that it was the writ of the VHP rather than that of the law and order machinery that ran in the State, could not have come at a more inopportune time for the Government. Mr. Singh directly blamed the VHP and Bajrang Dal for the sudden spurt in crime and the Chief Minister had to endorse his statement.
The police and government officials are giving the versions of the communal incidents that they know would be liked by the ... VHP leaders and the Minister of State for Home, Haren Pandya ... Under VHP pressure CM was forced to order an inquiry against the management of a Christian missionary school in Rajkot for allegedly encouraging forcible conversion of Hindu minor girls, side tracking the main issue of the burning of ... copies of the New Testament by the VHP activisis.
In Gujarat, considered one of the most communally-sensitive state, communal skirmishes are nothing new but they are being deliberately brought into the focus by the Parivar apparently to create a scare among the minorities. With ... their "god father" in power both in the State and at the Centre, the Parivar activists are going all out against the minorities
... The sense of insecurity is more pronounced among the Christians than the Muslims. Panicked by the demolition of some churches ... the Christians have decided to take insurance cover for the churches against any future attack. The priests have been advised against moving around in their uniforms.
There seems to be an unwritten law not to allow any new construction of minority places of worship under one pretext or the other, while Hindu temples are coming up in ... hundreds ...
The tension between the VHP and the Christians seems to have been heightened by the fact that there are more converted Christians than Muslims. While the Muslim leaders are being accused of trying to convert Hindu girls through marriage with Muslim boys, mass conversions to Christianity were a common feature particnlarly among the tribals. The VHP has launched a systematic campaign to re-convert some of the converts ...
The series of communal skirmishes in Rajkot, Randhikpur, Kapadvanj, Baroda, Surat, Naroda, Zhankhvav and many other places involving the VHP and other Parivar activists has shaken the confidence of the minorities. The VHP has also launched a systematic campaign against both Muslim and Christian religious leaders, charging them with indulging in forcible conversion of Hindus. It is floating reports of a Muslim "conspiracy" to smuggle out young Hindu girls for engaging them in prostitution in other States or of abduction for forcible marriage with Muslim boys.
The VHP views all marriages between Muslim boys and Hindu girls as a conspiracy ... It does not find anything wrong in Hindu boys marrying Muslim girls but claims that the minorities do not permit that. According to the VHP general secretary, Dr. Pravin Togadiya, there were only three recorded cases of Hindu boys marrying Muslim girls and all the grooms got killed.
Like Togadiya, Pandya believed that most of the recent skirmishes were "provoked" by the minorities ... The DGP, however, has rejected the VHP contention of provocation from the minorities.
(However) none of the incidents has flared up into a full-fledged communal riot ... Not a single life has been lost. (Source: The Hindu, 9 August, 1998)
VHP: GS Praveen Togadia's Views
Muslims are targeting Hindu women by forcing them into marriage. The mullahs at the Achhod Masjid have issued a fatwa asking Muslim men to have sex with Hindu women and then marry them. There have been many such cases.
Gideon Bibles are distributed to minors in mission schools along with a form saying, "I accept Jesus Christ as my saviour", which they are asked to sign ...
In the tribal areas, the Church is encouraging a separatist movement, as it wants to carve out a Christian homeland ... The PWG has become an active in South Gujarat as it is in Andhra Pradesh; it is the Church which is encouraging extremism and violence ...
The Church is disobeying courts of law and violating the law of the land ... It is assaulting backward communities of Hindus ... They want to recreate Mizoram and Nagaland in Gujarat ... Who are the school authorities to decide giris should not wear bindis and bangles, which are part of our culture?
We are considering a law to restrict conversions ... We have undertaken a public awareness campaign. Our sadhus are engaged in it ... In tribal areas, we are stepping up social services, like schools and dispensaries. (Source: The Outlook, 10 August, 1998)
Hindustan Times On RSS Meeting with BJP MPs
The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has stepped in to take stock of the BJP-led Government and the unstable political scenario by convening two interactive meetings with the Bharatiya Janata Party MPs. Although it is theoretically slated for members who are also ... "Swayamsevaks", almost all the 180-odd MPs are likely to turn up.for it.
Spread over two days beginning 21 July, 1998, RSS chief Rajendra Singh himself ... conducted this exercise with the MPs. While Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee was present at the first meeting at the Prime Minister's House, the July 23 conclave would take place at the RSS headquarters at Jhandewalan, Home Minister Advani is (also) scheduled to attend this meeting.
(RSS) described this "invitation" as a "routine exercise" by the organisation head for the volunteers (and) that it was only a social occasion and there would be "no major political discussion" during the meeting ...
... The RSS chief's interaction with the BJP MPs from the RSS ranks came barely three weeks after he had a stock taking session with the Prime Minister and the Home Minister. Present during that meeting was also senior RSS leader K.S. Sudarshan who oversees the RSS- BJP relations. (Source: The Hindustan Times, 21 July, 1998)
Indian Express On RSS Meeting with BJP MPs
... Rajju Bhaiyya ... impressed upon them the importance of maintaining discipline, ... project a unified front by avoiding public airing of differences on issues.
Accordirg to RSS sources, Rajju Bhaiyya has been upset about the statements and counter-statements from various BJP MPs and even ministers and is feeling concerned that this is harming the image of the party.
Since the Government came to power in March this year, the BJP has been embarrassed on several occasions when its own MPs came out with statements contrary to the party line on the Women's Reservation Bill (and) over the Ayodhya temple issue. (Source: The Indian Express, 22 July, 1998)
Saifuddin Soz's Statement On RSS Chief's Address to IAS Officers 27 July, 1998
... The RSS Chief's address to IAS Officers on (25 July, 1997 at Lucknow) raises the question of propriety and sets a very bad precedent ... The bureaucracy ... cannot be induced to dabble in politics directly ... The RSS is unravelling its hidden agenda and the democratic and secular forces have to remain on guard ..
... I demand that the Government should make ... a statement on this obnoxious development ..