By Mumtaz Alam Falahi, TwoCircles.net
Dhule (Maharashtra): Six people have been killed so far in the communal riot that erupted on Sunday (Oct. 5) in Dhule town in Maharashtra and 86 injured after tearing of posters which had “provocative language and had branded the entire Muslim community as terrorists.” Today, however, was a peaceful day with no report of violence.
However, locals say 15-20 are feared to have been killed in the rioting as well as police firing as reports from outer areas yet to arrive. Hundreds of houses and shops mostly owned by the minority community have been looted and burned.
Zainul Abedin, Dhule in-charge of Movement for Peace & Justice (MPJ), told TwoCircles.net from the violence-hit town that around 400 people from the minority community are injured. Many have been injured in police firing.
Calling from a trust hospital Abedin said several hospitals belonging to the members of the community have also been ransacked. Several Muslim injured have been thrown out of civil hospitals. Abedin was helping patients in the hospital. He said he saw two children (sibling), one 10 years old and other 7 years old with stomach injury. They had injury with police gun butt. They had vomited blood and were rushed to the hospital.
Giving details about how violence started he said that Hindu Rakhshak Sabha, a new Hindutva outfit, had put up posters and banners around mid-September. They had pictures of Amarnath yatra and Ahmedabad bomb blasts. Under the pictures there was a sentence in which the entire Muslim community was branded as terrorists.
Since the day posters and banners appeared in the town of five lakh population (of which Muslims are around 35%), Muslims were feeling uneasy and informed the administration about it. “On Saturday, (Oct. 4) the day before the violence broke out, an MPJ delegation met Collector and SP and presented them with a memorandum demanding removal of the provocative banners and posters,” said Abedin. But the administration did not take any action. The next day around noon when some persons from the minority community tore down some posters the news spread like wildfire and within hours the entire town was in the thick of violence, looting, arson and killing.
There are reports of several mosques having been demolished and at least 51 houses looted and burned. After the combing operation by the police yesterday rioters attacked several Muslim homes and looted. According to Auragabad Times an ambulance van of Shafa Trust was attacked, Muslim injured people and their families were pushed out and the rioters captured it. The report says there have been loot, arson and violence at large scale in villages. Additional Collector Mushtaq Patel was brutally beaten by the rioters. He is in coma.
Abedin of MPJ said the Police have arrested several social workers who were bringing the injured to hospitals. In total, he said, 250 people have been arrested, mostly from the minority community. He further said that due to fear local Muslim politicians who were hiding since the day one came out today when some Muslim leaders including Baba Siddiquee and Naseem Khan from Mumbai visited the town today.
Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, State Home Minister R R Patil and Union Home Minister for state Prakash Jaiswal visited the town today.
Given the scale of violence, Abedin said the rioting was well planned.