By Ritu Sharmam, IANS,
Ahmedabad : Time has not been able to chip away at the sectarian walls erected in this city during the 2002 Gujarat riots. Francis D’ Souza, 45, who wanted to buy a flat, learnt it the hard way.
Being a Christian, he belonged to a minority community and was a non-vegetarian. His request for a house in the Hindu-dominated Paldi area was turned down even though he is an affluent entrepreneur with hotels here as well as in Dubai.
“I wanted to buy a flat in Paldi as it was a good investment option. But I was denied one. I was able to buy the house in my friend’s name just because he is a Hindu. Now only the power of attorney is in my name,” D’ Souza told IANS.
Finally, D’Souza’s family did not move into their new house, fearing tension.
“My family refused to stay in the flat as they are non-vegetarian and cooking meat in the apartment would lead to social ostracism, no one would speak to my wife,” he added. Gujarati Hindus are overwhelmingly vegetarian.
D’Souza’s wife along with his son and daughter are currently living in Mumbai.
“This unwritten rule is being followed in Hindu-dominated areas and all the minorities – Muslims, Christians and Sikhs – have to face discrimination,” he said.
Some housing societies like Shilalekh in Sahiba Bagh and Arbuda in Navrangpura have even put up boards saying “Only For Hindus”.
Communal riots broke out in various parts of Gujarat on Feb 28, 2002, after the Sabarmati Express caught fire in Godhra town a day earlier, killing 59 passengers, mostly Hindu.
In the ensuing violence – one of the worst communal conflagrations in the country – around 1,000 people, mostly Muslim, were killed.
Insecurity in the aftermath caused many Muslim families here to shift out of Hindu-dominated areas and vice versa after the violence. And even those who were all for a cosmopolitan set-up in this city of four million people did not seem to have a choice.
“I owned a bungalow in Gulberg Society which was burnt down along with my shops. Still I wanted to buy a home in a Hindu area, but my efforts met with a stern ‘No’ from many housing societies,” said Mohammad Sharif, a well-off shop-owner.
“Now I am living in Juhapura, a Muslim-dominated area referred to as ‘Mini Pakistan’ by the local population,” said Sharif. He even sold off his burnt-down shops in Gulberg Society to a Hindu while moving out.
Human right activists say till date the division on communal lines is stark.
“In certain housing societies, it is an unwritten code to not allow the member of a minority community to buy a flat – and in some it is there in black and white. You go to any Hindu housing society, introduce yourself as Salma and you will definitely be denied a house,” said Father Cedric Prakash.
His NGO Prashant is working for the relief and rehabilitation of Gujarat riot victims.
The intolerance towards another community’s way of living is obvious in Ahmedabad – even within Hindus.
“Our housing society is dominated by Marwaris (who are originally from Rajasthan): about 99 percent of the residents belong to this community and the few remaining ones are from other communities – such as Gujarati,” said Mahesh Patel.
“I am a Gujarati myself and you could call me a minority in my housing society! I used to eat non-vegetarian before I shifted to my new residence. But none of the residents in this building is allowed to cook eggs or meat or even bring them into the premises,” said Patel.
Parsis – another peace-loving minority community – have also found themselves at the receiving end in Ahmedabad.
“Though we have not been denied homes in any area, after the 2002 carnage we have not been able to gather the courage to go and live in any polarised locality. So we moved to the Satellite area on the outskirts of Ahmedabad,” said Rupa Mody, a middle class Parsi family. The Satellite locality mostly has working professionals and their families akin to the Gurgaon township near Delhi.
Incidentally, this is the same Mody family whose son went missing during the riots. The boy has still not been found – and the tragedy inspired a moving film called “Parzania”.