"Violence broke out on 27 February in Godhra, a district headquarters in eastern Gujarat. Fifty-seven Hindus were killed, including 25 women and 14 children, who were burned alive aboard the Sabarmati Express... Those who were originally from Gujarat and were returning home aboard the Sabarmati Express had gathered together in a few coaches. They chanted Hindu nationalist songs and slogans throughout the entire voyage, all the while harassing Muslim passengers. One family was even made to get off the train for refusing to utter the kar sevaks' war cry: “Jai Shri Ram!” (Glory to Lord Ram!). More abuse occurred at the stop in Godhra: a Muslim shopkeeper was also ordered to shout “Jai Shri Ram!” He refused, and was assaulted until the kar sevaks turned on a Muslim woman with her two daughters. One of them was forced to board the train before it started going again... The anti-Hindu riot was thus a reaction to provocation from Hindu nationalist activists. The aftermath of the events clearly showed that the violence reached unprecedented proportions precisely because of the political strategy these Hindu nationalists employ."
Quote Details
Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Unverified quote
0 likes
Original Language: English
Available Languages (1)
Sources
Communal Riots in Gujarat: The State at Risk? July 2003. HEIDELBERG PAPERS IN SOUTH ASIAN AND COMPARATIVE POLITICS.
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Christophe_Jaffrelot
Revision History
No revisions have been submitted for this quote.
Categories
Christophe Jaffrelot
10 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Christophe Jaffrelot →
Related Quotes
"During that period, the French scholar Christophe Jafferlot was instrumental in providing significant amounts of atro…"
"The French researcher Christophe Jaffrelot, who is one of those experts who have uncritically swallowed quite a bit o…"
"In other words, Indian Muslims did not aim to blend into an Indian nation, but to fight within the Indian context alo…"
"Spokesmen for the Muslim elite invited the British to weigh quantitative criteria against qualitative aspects that co…"
"In 1924 the Dalits of Vaikham in the state of Travancore launched a satyagraha to gain access to a local temple, or a…"
"For Phule, Jesus Christ epitomises equality and fraternity. He also regards him as the spokesman for the poor. . . . …"
"Jobless plebeians joined Bajrang Dal and other similar lumpen organisations and started to get a sense of identity by…"
"The Hindutva of Savarkar was conceived primarily as an ethnic community possessing a territory and sharing the same r…"
"Jaffrelot consistently portrays Hinduism and Hindu social leaders, including Mahatma Gandhi, as caste-biased. Gandhi …"
"Les hommes font les lois. Les femmes font les mœurs."