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Humanity In Gujarat
HINDUSTAN TIMES , NEW DELHI
MARCH 06 , 2002
Sanity triumphs over madness
Shashank Mhasawade
(Surat, March 5)
Every cloud has a silver lining,
goes the cliché. For every dehumanised monster masquerading as an
upholder of faith, there's another who stands for all that is good in
man and his religion.
Gujarat's long weekend of terror might never have
ended for Mohammed Shabbir, but for Pravin and Nagin Patel. Pravin and
Dhirenlal Surti’s name could have figured in a list of 500 dead, but
for the Muslims of Amlipura. From the blackness of Surat's despair has
begun to emerge a ray of hope.
"It was 1.30 on Saturday afternoon when the mob
arrived. There were 2,000 of them," said Shabbir of Room 108,
Deendayal Society, Rander. "We — four of my family and I — fled
for our lives to the home of our neighbours Pravinbhai and Naginbhai.
They burnt our room to ashes before our eyes."
Pravin is a policeman; Nagin works for the Surat
Municipal Corporation. With a petrified Shabbir by their side, the two
made frantic calls to the police station and the fire brigade, telling
them who they were and what was happening in front of their home.
For an hour or more, there was no response. Then
Nagin decided to lie to Pravin's colleagues at the chowki nearby — 25
people had died in the fire, he said. Police arrived, and the mob fled.
Shabbir and his family were escorted to a relative's place in Rander.
The Patels refused to accept the greatness Shabbir
thrust on them. "We saved no one's life; by sheltering our
neighbours we only did what was expected of us," said Pravin's
wife. She cannot believe the police didn't respond to her husband's
calls.
The Patels live under protection now — the leaders
of the mob have vowed to avenge their "betrayal".
It's not just Shabbir and the Patels. In this port
city tales abound of sanity's triumph over the madness of communal
frenzy. Nor are the stories of February-March 2002 unique — they were
heard a decade ago, in December 1992-January 1993.
Pravin Surti and his uncle Dhirenlal are the only
Hindus on Amlipura's Jamadar Street. There are 500 Muslim families and
three mosques in the vicinity.
For five days from February 27, you could cut the
tension there with a knife. But no one touched the Surtis or their
workshop.
"We have no fear," said the younger Surti.
"We have never had any fear. Not a stone was thrown at our house in
1992 or 1998 either. The Muslims are our friends. It's the politicians
who want us to fight."
The words of neighbour Ayoob Menon buttress his
confidence. "We will not let anything happen to the Surtis, come
what may. They trust us and we will never betray them."
A statement that inspires more like the Surtis.
Jayesh Shah of Mugalisara's Ratna Chintamani Apartments, for example.
"There are 50 Hindu, and 500 Muslim families here. We are one large
family," says he.
INDIAN EXPRESS , NEW DELHI
MARCH 08 , 2002
For 48 hrs, they shielded Muslim friends
Stavan Desai
AHMEDABAD, MARCH 7: When Ahmedabad started burning, this area should have been the first to go up in flames. Tulsi Park Society is a small residential locality of around 14 Dalit houses surrounded on all sides by about seven Muslim-dominated localities. But courtesy two corporators — a Hindu and a Muslim — who showed the presence of mind the state needed of its government, no one died here, no one was attacked, not a single shop was looted and while those elsewhere downed shutters, these kept functioning normally.
Today, bang in the midst of flaming Gomtipur, Muslims residing in and around Ahmedi Society near Sukhram Nagar Crossroads feel much safer than those in other parts of the city. When the mob came for the Muslims on February 28, leaders of the 20 Dalit families of Tulsi Park and nearby localities stood between them and the 500 rioters, holding them off for two days, sometimes at a distance of just 100 metres. The mob instigated the Dalits, urging them to destroy the Muslims as they were a majority in their area and a ‘‘threat’’, but not one of the 15-20 leaders budged, telling the rioters would have to take them on before getting at their Muslim neighbours.
The people know whom they have to thank — municipal corporators Dahyabhai Parmar and Iqbal Sheikh, both Independents elected from Gomtipur Ward no 30. After the Godhra carnage and the VHP’s call for a bandh on February 28, they decided there was no time for a meeting or a discussion with members of their community. Instead, they picked up the phone and just talked.
‘‘We did not have the time to call a meeting of community members,’’ says Sheikh, who is also the deputy chairman of Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation’s (AMC) Health Committee. ‘‘I just telephoned Dahyabhai and we decided that we would take care of our respective areas and would not allow anyone to provoke our men.’’
Parmar agreed. ‘‘Immediately after my telephonic conversation with Iqbal,’’ he says, ‘‘I talked to a couple of people in my locality and asked them to maintain peace.’’ Parmar was even threatened by a couple of men but his and Sheikh’s firm resolve to maintain peace meant no untoward incident took place.
Madhu Prem, who is in his late ’60s and a practising advocate at the City Civil and Sessions Court, doesn’t find this surprising. ‘‘We have been living together in this area since the past 32 years. And even during the worst of riots, we have not fought. How could we allow a handful of outsiders to shatter the peace of our area?’’ he says.
‘‘The mob tried to instigate us so that we join them. But we gave them the clear message that we do not need anybody’s help to protect us,’’ says Rohit Waghela.
‘‘The mob was urging us to destroy the Muslim locality as they were high in number and could be a threat to us. But we have stayed here all our life and know each other. When they have supplied food for our children during our hour of need, how can they harm us? We trust them and they trust us,’’ says Dhiru Makwana.
The Muslims agree. ‘‘It is outsiders and not the Hindus here who we fear. It was the Hindus, the Dalits, who stood between the mob and us. The mob had tried its best to provoke them,’’ recalls Ismail Mansuri.
INDIAN EXPRESS , NEW DELHI
MARCH 02 , 2002
Hate wave fails to scorch fellow feeling
Tanvir Siddiqui
AHMEDABAD, MARCH 1; Even as the city was burning following the bandh called by VHP activists, there were a few who braved mobs to save the lives of their neighbours and even those not known to them.
In Shahibaug area yesterday afternoon, two women came forward to save casual labourers Husainbhai and Valibhai, who were surrounded by a mob baying for their blood. They kept on pleading with the crowd to let the two men off till Girdharnagar councillor Narendra Brahmbhatt happened to pass by on his way to Chamanpura. ‘‘We saw the two men surrounded by a mob. Somehow we managed to push them into the vehicle. Later, they told us that they were carrying out errands and were returning to their house in Camp Sadar Bazaar on Airport Road,’’ said Brahmbhatt. He said that the men were saved because the women succeeded in delaying the mob.
In another incident, an irate mob set fire to the house of well-known dentist Dr Nisar Shaikh and his brother-in-law Dr Halim Ansari, who live near Chunilal Kachhiani Chali near Behrampura police chowky.
INDIAN EXPRESS , NEW DELHI
MARCH 07 , 2002
Fires die out in Ahmedabad, angels of mercy set to work
Shefali Nautiyal
AHMEDABAD, MARCH 6: Hindu hands, Muslim hands, nobody really cares. To those struck by tragedy, lying charred, bruised and near death in city hospitals here, they are hands of mercy. Hands that belong to individuals, entire families, groups of friends camping at the city hospitals to do their bit.
Most of those helping out here do not belong to any social organisation. They work in silence, handing out food, clothes, medicines, money, and reassurance to riot victims.
A man and his two teenage sons were spotted at the burns ward of the Civil hospital, handing out clothes to women. They left as quietly as they came. ‘‘We are not doing this for publicity,’’ said the father when stopped outside the ward. ‘‘It is my duty as well as the duty of every God-fearing person to help the victims. I don’t want it to sound like a speech. That is the job of our politicians,’’ he said.
A group of volunteers have been passing rotis and dal from the rear gates of VS Hospital to families of victims for the last four days. ‘‘We live behind the hospital and heard that a lot of the people here do not have food to eat. We’ve also been told that the served here is not good,’’ said one of the volunteers.
So they formed a group, the women of their houses started cooking dal, rotis and rice, while the men took it upon themselves to distribute it. ‘‘It is not a large scale affair. We are using the rear gate because we don’t want any publicity,’’ said the volunteer, as he sat distributing food to all who came.
‘‘My clothes were burnt in the fire and the outfits I have left stink of petrol and kerosene,’’ said Sabeera Shaikh, one of the victims, who now wears a gown that was handed to her by a patient from the next ward. ‘‘She was being discharged and while leaving, she gave me her gown and other clothes. All these days, she would share her home-cooked with us. She left yesterday. May Allah bless her,’’ said Sabeera.
Mohammad Rushadji, 55, and his 70-year-old mother were brought from Chandola lake area. Rushadji’s right leg had to be amputated as it was infected by a bullet wound. ‘‘A man came to us yesterday and gave me Rs 200 to buy medicines and also promised to take us home safely,’’ said Rushadji’s mother.
ASIAN AGE , NEW DELHI
MARCH 04 , 2002
25 Muslims living in chawl find safety in Hindu home
By Tushar Prabhune
Ahmedabad,
March 3
When the whole city is engulfed in a communal frenzy, it is rare for anyone to risk his life to protect members of another community. One such case that has come to light is that of Virsinh Rathod, a Hindu who provided shelter to nearly 25 Muslims in Naroda.
Mr Rathod, who stays just opposite Jikar Hussain chawl on Naroda Road
— where 58 people were burnt to death — rescued and provided
security to about 25 Muslims who managed to escape the wrath of a
rioting mob. He shared his experiences of the worst-ever communal
outbreak in Naroda. “I don’t believe in religion, it was purely on
humanitarian grounds that we rescued these people and gave them
shelter,” he told The Asian Age.
Recalling how the rescue took place, Mr Rathod said, “When the
incident took place, one of my friends told me that many of those who
had managed to escape the mob were still inside the chawl. I took my
vehicle and tried to go to find them, but the police did not allow me
inside saying that there was curfew.”
Despite being stopped Mr Rathod managed to reach the interior of the
chawl and locate the people who were hiding in the compound of a gas
agency near the chawl. Salim Sheikh, one of those rescued, said, “I
somehow managed to escape the attack and took shelter in the compound of
the gas agency office. I became unconscious amid the cylinder blasts and
my eyes only opened in his house. Today I owe my life to him.” Mr
Rathod and his friends are now trying to send the Muslims to Shahibaug
camp where the police has sent other residents for safety. However,
their attempts have failed due to the on-going violence.
Mr Rathod, nearly 55, said, “Though this is the first time that people
have been killed in this area there have been sporadic incidents when
the people from the minority communities have needed support.” He has
been staying in Naroda for 37 years and said the development of a new
Naroda area recently was a catalyst in inciting communal tension in the
area.
“Hindus and Muslims here have been living in harmony for many years
but the Godhra incident proved to be a trigger in this deteriorating
process,” he said. Moreover, a certain class of rich people in the
adjoining areas of Naroda have been instrumental in instigating these
mobs for their vested interests, he added.