Communal Violence in Goa: Neros in Khaki

Communal Violence in Goa: Neros in Khaki
(Gomantak Times - Weekender, Panjim, March 5, 2006)


Neros in Khaki


The BJP ignites a minor incident and has fuelled
hatred that has snowballed into full blown communal
carnage in Curchorem. As homes and hearts of the
minorities are being torn apart, a hapless and “badly
stretched” police watches over the destruction and
loot. TEAM GT traveled and worked out of the riot
stricken areas of Savordem and Curchorem to get you
the real story and separate falsehood from facts.

Curchorem/Sanvordem:
Goa went into a spin as the communal violence in
Curchorem and Savordem spun out of control and
threatened to engulf the whole state, thankfully here
were no deaths, but a complete failure on the
intelligence machinery and the BJP’s tacit as well as
overt role in fuelling tensions, has scarred Goa’s
psyche.

The communal violence that has rocked the state and
destroyed the communal harmony and law and order
situation in the state could have been averted if the
various arms of government had arrived at a consensus.
Worse still, even as the government machinery failed,
politicians took advantage of the situation, thereby
instigating the crowd and worsening the situation.

Reliable sources reveal that while SP (South) was
against issuing permission to the minority community
to hold a rally because he felt that the situation was
threatening to snowball into a major controversy
between the minority and majority community. However,
the Deputy Magistrate (South) granted permission to
hold the rally. Later Deputy Magistrate did withdraw
the permission to hold the rally , but by then it was
too late and in the unfortunate incident happening
since Friday many from the minority community were
attacked , their shops destroyed, houses ransacked and
vehicles damaged and scorched.

If on Friday, the police with a little force of over
409 personnel failed to handle the mob of 300o plus,
then on Saturday with a force led by SP (South). six
Dy.SP’s and 12 Police Inspector’s stood as mute
spectators as the crowd went on a rampage after being
ignited by the BJP leaders.

A controversial senior office bearer of BJP was heard
saying “It is high time that Hindus and Christians
join hands to kill the Muslims”. Despite all this, no
BJP leaders was arrested or warned for igniting the
crowd and creating communal tension!


S(H)AT(T)ER DAY

• Demonstrators gather at Sanvordem TISK, 60 arrested
for violating Section 144.
• As Chief Minister Rane arrives, gathered people
demand release of 60. Rane warns the people and
leaves.
• Mob turns violent. Police swings into action, fires
in the air. Policemen hurt. Fire services put into
service.
• Governor Jamir arrives .Holds talks with BJP
leadership led by Manohar Parrikar.
• Those arrested are released by 1.30 pm. Mob
continues to loot business establishments and destroy
vehicles.
• Fresh violence erupts. PI Gundu Naik’s pistol
snatched. PSI Devendra Gad also injured, falls
unconscious. His pistol is also taken.
• Mob beats up a constable. He pulls out his service
revolver. Some rounds fired by mistake injuring one
Manohar Naik and another person. Both admitted to Goa
Medical College.
• CISF already posted, three RAF men and CRPF arrived
today.


Six Dy.SP s, about Twelve Police Inspectors should
have controlled it, but the force was inadequate.

Senior officials of the Goa police admit that some of
the damage unleashed on minorities could have been
controlled and quelled since there were Six DySPs and
Eleven Police Inspector’s who were at the spot.
However they admit that the number of men did not add
up. The force was woefully short of what was needed to
stem the violence.

Though no one is admitting this openly, it is clear
that the entire force and the almost non-existent
police machinery was caught napping and were
unprepared for the situation. The BJP and its
affiliates knew only too well that it takes Thirty six
hours for Goa to mobilize optimum personal in a
situation like this and struck without warning.

The Goa Government has claimed credit for not allowing
the violence to get out of hand. In fact Chief
Minister Rane actually termed the situation peaceful,
since there not a single causality. (As our stories
will tell you, this claim is laughable)

Significantly, police officials have completely denied
the BJP propaganda that minority gangs had come from
Bhatkal and Karwar in Karnataka and had brandished
swords and threatened to wipe out the majority
population in Sanvordem. DIG Ujjwal Mishra said that
both the SP and DM (South Goa) confirmed that “in
meeting of the minorities yesterday (Friday) none was
armed or looked like an outsider”.

Mishra admitted that the Goa police was “badly
stretched” and was in no position to control the
sudden but almost premeditated attack on minority
shops, establishments.

Asked why the police fiddled in Curchorem while it
burnt, Mishra speaking to TEAM GT said “We wanted to
save lives. The force was escorting the victims and
was not enough to counter attack and arrest the
attackers.”

Roadway to Hell
Cocktail of Hate: Shaken and Stirred

Preetu Nair and Lynn Shirodkar
reporters@gomantaktimes.com

Nearly 50 vehicles destroyed and many burnt, four
petrol pumps damaged, shops looted, 20 houses
ransacked and later burnt. All owned by people from
the minority community and the number is increasing by
the hour.


Curchorem/Savordem: The stillborn silence and
suspicion look that they give you makes you squirm. If
the shameless violence appeared to be greatest mockery
of democracy for the cultured, then for the seven
hundred plus persons from the minority community here,
it had shattered their dreams and vision of communal
harmony in Goa.

As democracy’s most forceful articulation , inevitably
driven by the most primeval passions- hate, made its
way into Curchorem and Savordem from Friday , it has
probably silenced the people of the minority community
forever. They are scared to speak or react. But once
they open up, the scars are evident.

Slowly but with caution they reveal how the nameless,
unreasoning and unjustified terror has paralyzed their
life forever. Though they speak, they refuse to be
quoted for they fear that will be punished by the
majority community for speaking their mind.

“We were planning a silent rally to propagate communal
harmony and human bonding on Friday. But we never
expected things to go out of the hand” said a young
person from the minority community.

Recollecting the events of Friday he said, “we
canceled our rally by 2.30 pm once we were warned by
the Deputy Collector (South) that there was a chance
of a mob attack. But by then many people had gathered
at Curchorem from different parts of Goa. Before we
could think or do anything, a mob appeared and pelted
stones at us. Further, they destroyed our vehicles
and many of us took shelter in the mosque.”

“We are separated from our families. We tool shelter
in the mosque, but we hear that our children were
driven away from the house before the mob damaged and
looted it. We don’t know where and how they are,” said
one elderly man.

What has shocked the minority community is the
unprepardness and inefficiency of the Goa police and
Congress government. “if the police suspected foul
play they should have come prepared. There were hardly
30 or 40 policemen when a mob of more than 1000
policemen attacked us,” said another person.

Congress voters since ages, they swear that they will
never vote for the party again, “We were calling each
and every Congress party minister for help and not a
single person was contactable. We are also human
beings, we also have feelings, and we also want to
live peacefully. Why are politicians playing with out
lives and dreams to fulfill their political
ambitions”, said an elderly man. With tears in his
eyes, he added, “This is not the Goa I knew and loved.
This is not my Goa.”

They rubbished newspaper reports that people from
majority community reacted because many of their
people came from Bhatkal and Hubli in vehicles with
swords and knives. “This is utter lie .If it was true,
we should have also attacked the mob rather than
taking shelter in the mosque. Why was not a single
vehicle with Karnataka registration burnt or
destroyed?

All the vehicles that were destroyed belonged to
people from our community, who are either Goans or
settled here since ages.” And true enough; all the
vehicles destroyed and burnt had Goa registration!

I don’ Know, I just don’t know

The woman who wanted to build the Madrasa is too
shocked at the backlash.

Preetu Nair and Lynn Shirodkar
reporters@gomantaktimes.com


Guddemol (Sanvordem)
Fear stared in Samshad Begum Anar Bi’s eyes and
chalked her face. She is absolutely confused and too
shocked to speak. When after lots of coaxing, she does
speak most of what she utters are abrupt sentences,
followed by long stretches of silence and stare.

She starts of with, “I built this structure single
handedly. I did get financial help from my community
members. It was to be a mosque and a madrasa .People
could pray and young children could study Arabic.”

Samshad had built the structure on a government land,
which comes under the Twenty Point Programme. The
structure was renovated recently to start a mosque as
well as a Madrasa (a school for imparting religious
preachings). But on February 24, the Savordem
panchayat issued a notice in which they stated that
the structure is illegal and would be demolished
within seven days. However, she got a stay order from
the Directorate of Panchayats. But when locals learnt
about it, they attacked the building at night and
demolished the structure.

“It was around midnight, when a mob attacked and
destroyed the structure. I don’t know why they
attacked. I just don’t know…,” and her voice withered
away, as if she was again lost in her world of
uncertainty and grief.

This is not the Goa we once knew

Preetu Nair and Lynn Shirodkar
reporters@gomantaktimes.com

Curchorem/ Sanvordem
Many locals are shocked and in an utter state of
disbelief. After all, this is not the Goa they love
and value so much. They had always boasted and taken
pride over Goa maintaining its communal harmony,
despite all odds.

But when the houses of minority community were
ransacked and demolished, shops burgled by an angry
mob led by BJP and a few Shiv Sainiks, they were
reduced to mere spectators watching the incidents from
the safety of their houses.

They talk but refuse to be quoted. Said one person
“They can do anything. They have turned a small issue
into a religious issue and are attacking people and
destroying homes. We want to be safe.”

“We are very shocked by the way people have reacted.
They have mixed two issues: one of religion and
another insider-outsider issue. It is really sad and I
feel ashamed,” said another lady.

Meanwhile, an elderly man who observed the incidents
of the day went inside shaking his hands, as the mob
started pelting stones and attacking police. “This is
the darkest and worst day for the Goan society. As few
locals are going about creating a mountain out of a
molehill, they have destroyed the harmony and peace of
the place. I can’t believe this is happening in my
Goa,” he added.

Another person, who was part of the mob on Friday, but
withdrew on Saturday said, “It has now become a
political issue and the politicians are now using us
for their political gains.”

GOA WANTS ANSWERS

• THEY SAY: CM Pratapsing Rane tells a delegation of
minority leaders who seek appointment with him on
Saturday, “I have visited the place in the morning.
Everything is normal and peaceful. You meet me on
Monday”.

BUT: Mr. CM is burning cars, pelting stones,
ransacking petrol pumps and looting sari, footwear
shops and small establishments, injured policemen etc.
signs of peace or violence?

• THEY SAY: Both the people from majority community
and BJP leaders say that the violence occurred because
people from minority community brought people armed
with swords and knives from Bhatkal and Hubli
BUT: If the people from minority community were really
armed, then why did they not retaliate and attack the
mob? On the contrary, many rushed back home and others
took shelter in the mosque at Curchorem.

• THEY SAY: Further there are allegations that they
came in large numbers from Karnataka.
BUT: Not a single vehicle, which was damaged and
destroyed, had Karnataka registration. All vehicles
belonged to people from minority community in Goa.

• They Say: Leader of Opposition, Manohar Parrikar
said, “The influx of migrants in the state cause
social tension and disturb the harmony of the state.”
BUT: The majority of the people whose houses were
attacked, shops burnt and burgled are very much Goans.
And the few others who had migrated from other parts
of country had made Goa their homes and have ration
cards. By calling them outsiders, aren’t you violating
their fundamental right to live and work here?

• THEY SAY: Police claim that they were extremely
short – staffed to control the mob of three thousand
plus.
BUT: It is surprising that with Six Dy SP’s and Twelve
Police Inspectors at the spot, the police failed to
control the mob. But one must admit that the police
were tired and hungry. After all, they are on duty
from Friday evening and the authorities didn’t even
bother to feed them lunch. No wonder, many found it
difficult to handle the mob on empty stomachs.