Nuh: Markings of a made-to-order riot

The communal riots that rocked the Nuh region in Haryana and the Gurugram area in the National Capital Region (NCR) have many markings of trouble made-to-order and practised with perfection in many parts of the country. At least six people, including two home guards and a Muslim cleric, were killed, and many buildings, including a place of worship, and cars and other vehicles were destroyed or damaged in the violence that swept through the region in the last five days. Tension is still simmering under the debris of the conflagration. Many families and people have left their homes and many others have barricaded themselves, and it will take days to get back to normalcy. Even then, as riots often do to people, many of them would have changed to communal beings from human beings and their worlds would have been divided into ours and theirs.

The clashes first broke out during a religious procession, the Brij Mandal Jalabhishek Yatra, organised by the VHP. It was clear that tension was building up over the plan for a yatra through a mainly Muslim area. Further provocation was provided by a video released on social media to announce that a notorious cow vigilante and murder-accused, Monu Manesar, would be part of it. The yatra participants were armed with weapons and shouted provocative slogans. There was stone-pelting from the other side, which was also prepared, and perhaps both sides were expecting to be provoked by the other. Once the spark was lit, it spread to new areas. Routine procedures as prescribed in the script were followed to contain the situation. More forces were rushed, calls for peace were made, and the police and the administration met prominent leaders of both communities.

Also Read: No mastermind behind Nuh, culprits being arrested: Police

While there is a mutual blame game between the two sides and among the many who were involved in it in various ways, there are many questions that need answers. Two important questions are: Why was permission given to take out the yatra in a volatile situation; and, why did the police not take the provocateurs into custody. It is the administration’s responsibility to be vigilant against any threat to peace, to take steps to prevent loss of life and property, and to effectively deal with any disruption of peace. But the state government and the administration has been lax in all these. There were specific intelligence reports about trouble during the yatra, but they were not acted upon. The police act only on political cues, and politicians have their plans. Elections are in sight, and so perhaps riots present no surprises.