Communalism
: A fact-finding mission to Murshidabad in Bengal – the scene of recent clashes that led to the death of three people – has found that the violence there was not just a communal clash or a law and order issue, but a “deeply organised, politically driven situation, where religious polarisation, state inaction, and police repression have combined to disturb years of peaceful coexistence.”
On April 18 and 19, a 17-member fact-finding team comprising Feminists in Resistance (FIR), Association for Protection of Democratic Rights (APDR), Nari Chetna, Committee for the Release of Political Prisoners (CRPP), and Gono Songram Moncho (Murshidabad) visited several areas around the Shamsherganj block in Murshidabad.
The team, in a press release containing the highlights of the report which is yet to be released in full, recorded what it gleaned after it spoke with victims, eyewitnesses, residents of nearby areas, and representatives from the police and administration.
29/04/2025
Right-wing social media users claim these eateries were falsely using “Hindu names”, but a state minister has said their licenses were revoked for failing to meet hygiene standards. Meanwhile, online harassment and targeting continues. https://thewire.in/communalism/gujarat-muslim-owned-dhabas-gsrtc-license
What ensued was a campaign where several rightwing social-media users, and news outlets including Times Now and Zee News Madhya Pradesh-Chhattisgarh, carried reports of Muslims falsely “using Hindu names” to run their hotels, and the cancellation of their licenses owing to the same.
Meanwhile, Gujarat’s minister of transport, Harsh Sanghvi, issued a clarification on X claiming that these hotels’ licences were cancelled owing to hygiene and safety standards.
“GSRTC has permanently stopped buses at 27 hotels due to dirt and unhygienic conditions!
This step has been taken for the convenience and hygiene of our passengers. We have instructed our department to monitor all other bus stops and hotels so that they follow the rules and provide the best services to the passengers,” Sanghvi tweeted.
by Sabah Gurmat
17/02/2025
The expulsion of seven students of Berhampur’s Parala Maharaja Engineering College (PMEC), a premier government-run technical institute of south Odisha, from their hostels for allegedly cooking and eating beef, has caused ripples in the re gion.
https://thewire.in/communalism/beef-odisha-engineering-college-bajrang-dal-expel
The issue snowballed into a controversy after Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad activists lodged a complaint with police alleging that the students in question had cooked and consumed beef in their hostel room on the night of September 11. The expulsion took place the next day even though, so far, there has been no statement from the college authorities clarifying if the meat cooked and consumed by the students was indeed beef. The term “restricted activities” is yet to be explained by the authorities.
Political analysts like Sabita Mohanty believe that saffron hold on the area is likely to get stronger in the wake of incidents like the one that took place in Parla Engineering college. “Such incidents need to be handled carefully without any kind of bias. The college authorities should act only on the merits of the case and not succumb to pressure either from politicians or any group owing allegiance to any philosophy.”
17/09/2024
Historically, the Dargah at Guha has stood as a testament to the blending of Sufi and Nath traditions, with local Muslim Mujawar families shouldering the responsibility of its management. However, the tranquility of this syncretic space has been under attack. https://thewire.in/communalism/maharashtra-how-hindutva-forces-communalised-syncretic-kanobha-dargah-in-ahmadnagar
The catalyst for the current conflict can be traced back to the events of December last year, when a Ram Kalash Yatra procession led to the unauthorised placement of a Hindu idol within the dargah premises. Despite appeals to authoritie
s and legal interventions, the mob placed the idol of Kanifnath inside the Dargah. Since then, the premises of the Hazrat Ramzan Shah Baba has been sealed by the local police.
19/03/2024
A court in Uttar Pradesh, while sentencing 10 Hindu men to life imprisonment for lynching a Muslim goat trader in Hapur in 2018 after fabricated rumours of cow slaughter, significantly also pulled up the state police for lapses and negligence in the investigation of the case and recommended action against the concerned officers.
by Omar Rashid
14/03/2024
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