The widespread detention and demolition of Indian Muslims’ property has raised concerns that right-wing Indian nationalists are taking advantage of last week’s terrorist attacks in Kashmir to deepen oppression campaigns against the country’s largest minority.
Public anger was killed in 26 people (except one tourist outside of Hinduism) by militants in Indian public office areas where Muslims are the majority. India said Pakistan has support for the attack, an allegation that Pakistan denies.
India appears to be preparing for a military attack on Pakistan with terrorist attacks, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi vowing to hunt down terrorists and “raze to the ground.” Pakistan believes an imminent strike in India is expected, Pakistan said on Tuesday.
So far, India’s central government has been working to implement a range of punitive measures against Pakistan, including threats to destroy the flow of cross-border rivers. But officials and right-wing Hindu groups have intensified harassment against Muslims, using it as a driving force to oppose illegal immigration.
In several states run by Mr. Modi’s Bharatiya Janata party, local officials used the moment to hunt down what they called “illegal Bangladesh” and the Muslim minority Rohingya who fled Myanmar. These tags, including “Pakistan”, are often used to target Muslim immigrants from other parts of India.
Muslims in at least two states in Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka were reportedly killed, media reports suggest this was a hate crime.
Inside Kashmir, security forces arrested hundreds of people while seeking the perpetrators of the April 22 attack, blowing up the homes of those accused of possessing terrorists. According to an official, the sweep included detention of 2,000 people, similar to the collective punishments imposed by authorities in the wake of Kashmir security forces’ previous attacks.
Kashmiris in other states also face harassment and violence, with right-wing groups filming themselves assaulting salesmen on the roadside of Kashmir and threatening violence if Kashmiris do not leave.
“The attacks by Pahalgam are terrible, but should not be a retaliation and attack on ethnic minorities, including arbitrary arrests or summary punishment,” said Meenakshi Ganguly, deputy director of Human Rights Watch.
Ms Ganguly said that “very large broadcast networks and social media users have been inciting hatred”, leading to violence.
The immediate rebound after the terrorist attack was targeted at Kashmiris and soon spread to wider anti-Muslim sentiment. Analysts say this has further expanded the demonization of Muslims, with Mr. Modi’s party having long hired Indian Hindu majority.
A few days after the attack, Kashmiris students studying in Indian cities reported harassment and threats. Omar Abdullah, the highest elected official in Kashmir, sent government ministers to different cities to help “ensure the safety and well-being of Kashmiris”.
In Uttar Pradesh, a Muslim restaurant worker was shot dead on April 23 and another was injured in a gun. The attacker declared himself a member of the Hindu group, released a videotape claiming responsibility and said: “I swear to my Indian mother that I will avenge 2,600 people.” (However, police in the state said the killing was related to the food dispute.)
According to local news, another Muslim man was lynched in Karnataka for chanting pro-Pakistan slogans.
The greatest move in Gujarat.
On Monday, the state police chief said his police officers had arrested 6,500 “suspected Bangladesh citizens.” Video of the detention drive shows the people moving on the streets on ropes.
The police chief said that to show how indiscriminate arrests are, only 450 detainees have been illegal immigrants in Bangladesh so far.
The Gujarat government also announced that demolition of a Muslim slum by the lake showed footage of a drone bulldozer and dump truck and listed an operation involving more than 2,000 police officers. By Tuesday night, the state’s interior minister Harsh Sanghavi said about 2,000 huts were razed to the ground in an effort toward an “illegal Bangladesh”.
Social activist Harsh Mander said painting Indian Muslims as “Bangladesh” is an ancient telescope used by Mr. Modi’s party.
The petition for lawyers who residents requested a pause was denied Tuesday as the government raised a national security debate.
The petitioners believe that they are Indian citizens and have lived in the region for decades. They acknowledged that the demolition occurred in areas where the government claimed to be public land, but said they had happened without prior notice or due process.
Petitioners in Ahmedabad, Gujarat said the detainees were harmed by “custody violence, atrocities and humiliation”, although the police soon realized that “more than 90% of the people detained” were Indian citizens.
Mr Mander said the action against Muslims was “this is all the measures the state is taking to leverage its power and authority in an unconstitutional way that is illegal and violates a particular community.”
Suhasini Raj,,,,, Showkat Nandaand Pragati KB Contribution report.
