Sri Lanka News Updates with Discussions

Religious violence in India


Many religious conflicts have occurred in India since independence. This religious violence includes the targeting of religious institutions, the persecution of people on the basis of their religion. Many times this violence took the form of riot. Religious fundamentalism is a major cause behind religious violence with both Hindu nationalism and Islamic fundamentalism are prevalent in India. Major conflicts include the 1984 Anti-Sikh Riots, the riots in Mumbai in 1992, the 2002 Gujarat violence, the 2007 Orissa Violence. Lesser incidents happen in many towns and villages five people were killed in Mau, Uttar Pradesh during Hindu-Muslim rioting, which was triggered by the proposed celebration of a Hindu festival. However, in judging the overall religious freedom, the US State Department in its annual reports on religious freedom for 2007 noted signs of improvement in India along with Saudi Arabia and Vietnam compared to Iran, Iraq, Burma, Eritrea, North Korea, China and Egypt

1984 Anti-Sikh Riots

The 1984 anti-Sikh riots took place in Delhi after the assassination of Indira Gandhi on October 31, 1984 by two of her Sikh guards as a retaliatory of Operation Bluestar. The main perpetrators were led by supporters of the Indian National Congress and the Nehru-Gandhi Dynasty.
The riots started on 1st November and continued till 3rd November 1984. The killings were led by activists and sympathizers of Indian National Congress. The first killing of a Sikh reported from east Delhi in the early hours of November 1. About 9 am, armed mobs took over the streets of Delhi and launched a massacre. Everywhere the first targets were Gurudwaras ? to prevent Sikhs from collecting there and putting up a combined defence. The then Congress government was widely criticized for doing very little at the time, possibly acting as a conspirator, especially since voting lists were used to identify Sikh families.
The 16th Century Babri Mosque was destroyed by right-wing Hindu extremists in 1992, resulting in nationwide religious riots and in neighbouring Bangladesh and Pakistan against Hindu minoroties.
On December 6, 1992, a group of Hindus destroyed the 430 year old Babri Mosque in Ayodhya, the land to be the birthplace of Rama. The resulting religious riots caused at least 1200 deaths.

Bombay Riots

The Bombay Riots occurred in the city of Mumbai, there was an incident of arson, killings and property destruction in every suburb of the city. The cause of the riots was the destruction of the Babri Mosque in Ayodhya by Hindu nationalists on December 6, 1992. 500 people died in the resulting violence of the worst civil unrest in India since the partition. Four people died in a fire in the Asalpha timber mart at Ghatkopar, five were killed in the burning of Bainganwadi shacks along the harbor line track between Sewri and Cotton Green stations were gutted and a couple was pulled out of a rickshaw in Asalpha village and burnt to death.

2002 Gujarat violence

Many Ahmedabad`s buildings were set on fire during 2002 Gujarat violence
In 2002 a series of communal riots took place between Hindus and Muslims in Gujarat in February-May 2002, sparked by the Godhra Train Burning. According to the death toll given to the parliament on May 11, 2005 by the government, 790 Muslims and 254 Hindus were killed, and another 2,548 injured. 223 people are missing. The report placed the number of riot widows at 919 and 606 children were declared orphaned. According to human rights groups, the death tolls were up to 2000. According to the United States Congressional Research Service the up to 2000, mostly Muslim were killed in the violence. Tens of thousands were displaced from their homes because of the violence. The large-scale, collective violence has been described as a `massacre`and an attempted pogrom or genocide of the Muslim population. According to New York Times reporter Celia Dugger, witnesses were `dismayed by the lack of intervention from local police`, who often `watched the events taking place and took no action against the attacks on Muslims and their property`. The perpetrators of the violence, Sangh leaders as well as the Gujarat governmentmaintain that the violence was rioting or inter-communal clashes - spontaneous and uncontrollable reaction to the Godhra train burning.

Anti-Christian violence

According to Human Rights Watch, there is large-scale violence being perpetrated by Hindu Nationalists against Christians. The increase in anti-Christian violence in India bears a direct relationship to the ascendancy of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Incidents of violence against Christians have occurred in many parts of India. It is especially prevalent in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and New Delhi. From 1964 to 1996, 38 incidents of violence against Christians were reported. In 1997, 24 such incidents were reported. Since 1998, Christians in India faced a wave of violence. In 1998 alone, 90 incidents were reported. The acts of violence include arson of churches, distribution of threatening literature, burning of Bibles, forcible conversion of Christians, destruction of Christian schools, colleges, and cemeteries. In 1997 in Gujarat 22 churches were burnt or destroyed, and another 16 damaged. On 5 November 1999, 26 students of St. Joseph`s Evening College in Bangalore were attacked by VHP activists for converting Hindus to Christianity. Jamuna Bhen, an agricultural laborer in Dang district in Gujarat told Human Rights Watch:
? The Hindus removed the ornamentation from our church on December 25, 1998. They threatened us by saying that they will set the church house on fire. Then they started taking down the roof tiles?. There were one hundred to 200 people who came from other villages. They said, `We will burn everything.` We begged them not to. We said, `Don`t do this,` and said we will become Hindu. ?

In a well-publicised case Graham Staines, an Australian missionary, was burnt to death while he was sleeping with his two sons Timothy (aged 9) and Philip (aged 7) in his station wagon at Manoharpur village in Keonjhar district in Orissa in January 1999. In 2003, the Hindu activist Dara Singh was convicted of leading the gang responsible.
In June 2000, four churches around India were bombed. In Andhra Pradesh, church graves were desecrated. A church in Maharashtra was ransacked. In its annual human rights reports for 1999, the US State Department criticised India for `increasing societal violence against Christians.` The report on anti-Christian violence listed over 90 incidents of anti-Christian violence, ranging from damage of religious property to violence against Christians pilgrims. Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), Bajrang Dal, and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh are the most responsible Hindu organizations for violence against Christians. Sangh Parivar and local media were involved in promoting anti-Christian propaganda in Gujrat.
In 2007, Christians were attacked in Kandhamal, Orissa. Nearly twelve churches were targeted in the attack by Hindu activists. Twenty people were arrested following the attacks on churches.
Violence against Hindus
Although Hindus form the religious majority in India with more than four-fifth of the population practice Hinduism incidents of violence have occurred against Hindus also. In North-East India, separatist Christian militant groups have emerged. The National Liberation Front of Tripura, a separatist group, wants to convert all tribals in the Tripura to Christianity. It has carried out many violent acts, including kidnapping and murders of RSS members and Hindu priests. The Baptist Church of Tripura has backed NLFT, and its members have confessed to buying and supplying explosives to the NLFT.
In the Kashmir region, many Kashmiri Pandits have been killed by Islamist militants in incidents such as the Wandhama massacre and the 2000 Amarnath pilgrimage massacre. Since March 1990, nearly 2.5 lakh pandits have migrated outside Kashmir due to persecution by Islamic fundamentalists.