Muslims of Ahmedabad: Social Changes Post-1993 and Post-2002 Riots Raheel Dhattiwala Muslims of Ahmedabad: Social Changes Post-1993 and Post-2002 Riots Copyright© WISCOMP Foundation for Universal Responsibility Of His Holiness The Dalai Lama, New Delhi, India, 2006. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher. Published by WISCOMP Foundation for Universal Responsibility Of His Holiness The Dalai Lama Core 4A, UGF, India Habitat Centre Lodhi Road, New Delhi 110 003, India This initiative was made possible by a grant from the Ford Foundation. The views expressed here are those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect those of WISCOMP or the Foundation for Universal Responsibility of HH The Dalai Lama, nor are they endorsed by them. 2 Contents Acknowledgements .............................................................................7 Preface .................................................................................................9 Introduction: An Overview ............................................................... 11 Riots Trigger Mainstream Education among Muslims ....................26 Crises that Triggered Vision .............................................................35 Islands of Sanity ................................................................................40 Living Together: Ram Next Door to Rahim .....................................47 Facing the Odds ................................................................................55 3 I dedicate this work to my parents. 5 Acknowledgements I am deeply grateful to WISCOMP without whom this monograph would not have happened. And to Sheba George without whom WISCOMP would not have happened. Dr Deepti Priya Mehrotra, I admire you for your insight into the issue and thank you for your consistent support as my guide; Dr JS Bandukwala for your patience and grit; Dr S Chatterjee for staying up all night to review my work; dwellers of Ram Rahim Nagar for helping salvage the little optimism left in me about Ahmedabad and all my friends from NGOs and educational institutions in Ahmedabad and Vadodara for sharing their experiences with me. A special thanks to my dear friend Rizwaan Ali. Raheel Dhattiwala 7 Preface The Scholar of Peace Fellowships awarded by WISCOMP for academic research, media projects and special projects are designed to encourage original and innovative work by academics, policy makers, defense and foreign policy practitioners, NGO workers and others. The series WISCOMP Discussion Papers, in conjunction with WISCOMP Perspectives, brings the work of some of these scholars to a wider readership. The tenth in the series, Muslims of Ahmedabad: Social Changes post- 1993 and post-2002 Riots is the outcome of a media project awarded to Raheel Dhattiwala, journalist with Times of India, Ahmedabad. The project explores social changes experienced by Muslims of the city, within a climate of growing communal conflict. Raheel Dhattiwala’s is a voice at once detached and deeply engaged. As a long-time resident of the city, she knows its communalised atmosphere, from the inside. As a journalist, she accesses the views and experiences of people from different strata, religions and sites in Ahmedabad. While her primary intention in the present project is to explore initiatives taken by Muslim residents of the city, at the same time, she explores the views and actions of Hindu and Jain residents. Through a survey, interviews, and study of secondary sources, Raheel examines the theme of ghettoisation – separation of Hindus and Muslims in terms of geographically demarcated living spaces. Work, business, employment and educational sites have got demarcated on a similar pattern. She also develops insights into the role of education vis-à-vis Muslims of Ahmedabad. Her findings indicate an increasingly pro- active stance towards modern education – which she analyses as a positive development, leading to greater opportunities in terms of joining ‘the mainstream’. Raheel’s is an important contribution to the growing body of work on communal conflict, and its impact upon ordinary citizens. Her observations lead to a nuanced understanding of people’s responses to the multiple crises posed by communalism. Conflict can escalate in different directions – from everyday acts of exclusion and communal divide, to events of explosive, searing violence. Ordinary people’s 9 positive interventions can stem the tide of communal conflict, by bringing about a better appreciation of the common concerns of people on both sides of the divide. The present monograph is a small, earnest step in this direction. The WISCOMP Research Team 10 Introduction: An Overview Young. Muslim. Woman. Living in Ahmedabad. Disowned by “Us” for being atypical. Disowned by “Them” because of not being one of Them. It can’t get worse than this, can it? I have spent all my life (28 years) in Ahmedabad, either being witness to or a victim of communal riots that seem to break out at the drop of a hat in a city where community ghettoes have long become acceptable infrastructure. The first major communal riot hit Ahmedabad in 1969. That’s almost a decade before I was born. Yet, for the ruination that it wreaked, and the precedent it set (Ahmedabad saw another three major riots in 1985, 1993, 2002 apart from scores of minor ones), one can’t help but do a flashback to ’69 – a year that set the genesis of communal decadence in Ahmedabad. I also remember how we – a family of four – survived on tranquilising pills on the nights of December 6 and 7, 1992 and how we – an apartment of 100 – waited with bated breath and a few packets of red chilli powder on the terrace waiting for the mob to arrive… it was defeatism at its best. Indeed, it’s difficult being a Muslim in Ahmedabad. But, it’s more difficult being a liberal Muslim. If not anywhere, then at least in Ahmedabad. The travails of being a liberal Muslim…: One can fathom it only if one is. For people (women in particular) like me, who always felt disowned by the community for being “different”, one question dogged my mind: is the liberal Muslim an endangered species in Ahmedabad? Maybe India too?. It pained me to see a Muslim youth wasting productive years of his life in becoming a Quran-e-hafiz and taking pride in calling the rest “kafirs” (while media hype has prevented this word being used openly, essentially it does exist in the innermost thoughts of many an average Muslim). The pain was as severe as the one I felt upon seeing a Hindu creating chasms of communal discord when he could be welcoming his ‘minor’ brethren. Instead, they could both be doing something constructive for their nation, for humanity. 11 I always asked myself: Why can’t the Muslim who turns the world upside down with his passion to fight ‘infidels’ like Salman Rushdie, not do the same when it comes to condemning Beslan, Godhra (no, it wasn’t condemned enough), 9/11, 7/7 (a survey conducted in the UK concluded that 3/4th of British Muslims sympathised with the terrorists) and, of late, 30/10 (New Delhi)? Even as I write this, I recall the happenings of the day. It’s just a few days after 30/10 – blasts ripped people-packed areas of New Delhi killing over 50 people. I was told by my editor today do a story on whether Muslims in Ahmedabad would scale down Ramzan Id celebrations (Id falls two days later, Nov 4). The story had to be shelved. Reason? None of my Muslim brethren felt the need to tone down festivities. Said one relatively liberal Muslim to me, “Had the community felt remorse at such happenings ever, it would have been pretty advanced in thought and deeds in this day and age.” Hmmm…not that the Hindus toned down their Diwali festivities either (ironically, Diwali almost coincided with Id, just a day apart), but being a Muslim I choose to introspect first. True, condemnation is beginning to build up. But it’s not enough. A very high-profile human rights activist known for her active role post Godhra riots admitted during a casual tête-à-tête, “Well, Muslims are laidback. They don’t realize how much that backfires on them.” Apparently, it’s more than being laidback. While interacting with two top Muslim businessmen of the city, who have faced huge losses in Ahmedabad riots, I was slightly taken aback when both very diplomatically told me: “We have never faced any problem. Muslims are unnecessarily making an issue out of a non-issue.” Such denial is probably what happens when the ethos of a society is ruled by money… Going back to my research, the topic I chose was a consequence of the questions that frequently arise – not only in my mind but in that of several Hindus too: When Islam is known for the respect it gives to women, why do men have to bring in a bizarre practice like triple talaq? How can a community that fails to uphold its own face (a smiling Zaheera Sheikh on TV, doing a volte face), expect to garner respect, even sympathy, by other communities? The words of former MP, Ahsan Jafri, who was brutally slain in the 2002 carnage, and whom I interviewed in October 2001, clearly ring in my ears: ‘It’s indeed shameful that while Muslims form the second 12 largest populace in the world, their contribution to the world – financial, social or scientific is very little. About time we started applying our minds to bring out the practical aspect of Islam and use it for the betterment of Muslims and the rest of the world.’ Jafri’s murder and the consequent delay in imparting justice, is condemnable beyond words. But it is also worrisome is that despite being an elected Lok Sabha MP, Jafri was disliked by several Muslims because of his ‘reformist’ ideas – gender equality, cutting down on rituals, encouraging mainstream education more than religious education etc.