Saturday, April 6, 2002
Muslim schoolkids targeted in Gujarat Vinay Menon (Ahmedabad, April 5)
The pogrom in Gujarat may be far from over. Intelligence collated by the Gujarat Police reveals that "Hindu activists" are piecing together a survey to identify students from rich, educated Muslim families in some prominent schools here. The objective, sources say, is to sustain the fear psychosis that has overcome the minority community, resulting in a sharp drop in the number of Muslim students attending school. "By conducting the survey, these religious maniacs are trying to force Muslim families to get their wards to leave these schools for good. A kind of cleansing of the education system, without spilling any blood," said a senior police officer. The three schools targeted are Xavier's Loyola Hall, Diwan Ballu Bhai and Ankur. This is the second time since the riots began that a "survey" like this has been conducted. On February 27 (a day before the riots began) meetings were reportedly held in several pockets of Ahmedabad city to identify Muslim properties and houses. This information was then passed on to mobs that attacked the targets. Several VHP and Bajrang Dal leaders have FIRs registered against them for leading these mobs — a charge both organisations deny. Intelligence inputs have not identified specific organisations that are responsible for the latest ‘survey’, but the needle of suspicion points in a familiar direction. "Our report shows that school staff, bus drivers, and autorickshaw drivers who ferry the children to school have been asked to assist in leaking information about Muslim students," said the police officer. "The idea this time being not necessarily to attack the targets, but to scare the children to the extent that it becomes difficult for them to attend schools without fear of being attacked." Collecting such information, sources say, is not a difficult task for these 'surveyors' since they have popular support. "It is not strange to see a schoolbus driver, who is also an activist or relative of an activist of one of the many Hindu organisations, assisting these goons in their job," the officer said. Information, it is reported, is also being collated by the same group of Hindu activists on what remains of Muslim business establishments across Gujarat. Such behind-the-scenes legwork continues even as eight areas with some minority presence in Ahmedabad city alone remain tense and under curfew. "The Prime Minister's speech was an effort in confidence building. But today, after more than 36 days of rioting, we still cannot walk on the streets of the city like free men, without fear of communal violence," said Anwar, a resident of Daryapur. One dead, 6 hurt Communal violence continued in Ahmedabad and other parts of Gujarat on Friday. One person was stabbed to death and six others were injured. Police opened fire to disperse mobs in Ahmedabad. In Lunavada town, an accident between a rickshaw and a tractor sparked off communal clashes. Night curfew continued to be in force at many places in south, central and north Gujarat where the situation was under control but tense.
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