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96-710: The 2002 Gujarat riots , also known as the 2002 Gujarat violence or the Gujarat pogrom , was a three-day period of inter-communal violence in the western Indian state of Gujarat . The burning of a train in Godhra on 27 February 2002, which caused the deaths of 58 Hindu pilgrims and karsevaks returning from Ayodhya , is cited as having instigated the violence. Following the initial riot incidents, there were further outbreaks of violence in Ahmedabad for three months; statewide, there were further outbreaks of violence against

192-445: A communalist riot , the events of 2002 have been described as a pogrom by many scholars, with some commentators alleging that the attacks had been planned, with the attack on the train was a "staged trigger" for what was actually premeditated violence. Other observers have stated that these events had met the "legal definition of genocide," or referred to them as state terrorism or ethnic cleansing . Instances of mass violence include

288-772: A Hindu man and injuring another during group clashes in Danilimda, Ahmedabad on 12 April 2005, while twenty-five others were acquitted. Eight people, including a VHP leader and a member of the BJP, were convicted for the murder of seven members of a family and the rape of two minor girls in the village of Eral in Panchmahal district. Fifty-two people from Pavagadh and Dhikva villages in Panchmahal district were acquitted of rioting charges for lack of evidence. Western India Goa: Gujarat: Maharashtra: Western India

384-498: A Hindu residential area in Jamalpur, residents reported that Muslim attackers injured approximately twenty-five Hindu residents and destroyed five houses on 1 March. The community head reported that the police responded quickly, but were ineffectual as there were so few of them present to help during the attack. The colony was later visited by Modi on 6 March, who promised the residents that they would be taken care of. On 17 March, it

480-477: A city in the western region experiences temperatures around 35-40 °C in summers and 7-12 °C on winters. Gujarat also has a warm climate with hot summers and cool winters. Marathi , Gujarati and Kokani are widely spoken languages in Western India. The majority follow Hinduism and there are significant minority who follow Islam and smaller number who follow Christianity . There are also

576-523: A cleric in Godhra, and a dismissed Central Reserve Police Force officer named Nanumiyan were presented as the "masterminds" behind the arson. After 24 extensions, the commission submitted its final report on 18 November 2014. The findings of the commission were called into question by a video recording released by Tehelka magazine, which showed Arvind Pandya, counsel for the Gujarat government, stating that

672-722: A fellowship to pursue advanced studies at Union Theological Seminary in New York City. It was at Union that he met and married a fellow student, Suzanne Harpole. After their marriage in 1947, they moved back to Nova Scotia where they both pursued graduate studies at Dalhousie. He worked as an advisor for returning veterans and secretary of the Maritime Provinces Christian Students Association while his wife earned her Diploma in Education. The couple then accepted positions through

768-530: A few indigenous Jews called the Bene Israel who speak Marathi . The Parsees who settled in Gujarat made Mumbai and Surat their home. Significant percentages of Jains and Buddhists can be found too. Most Christians live in the state of Goa. Overall, 83.66% of the population is Hindu , 10.12% Muslim , 4% Buddhist with Christians in Goa and Maharashtra making up the majority of the remainder. Marathi,

864-423: A government doctor over their role in the initial investigations. In January 2008, eleven men were sentenced to life imprisonment for rapes and murders and a policeman was convicted of falsifying evidence. The Mumbai High Court upheld the life imprisonment of the eleven men convicted for the gang rape of Bilkis Bano and the murder of her family members on 8 May 2017. On 15 August 2022, the Gujarat government released

960-402: A quote from a VHP leader as a headline, "Avenge with blood." The report stated that Gujarat Samachar had played a role in increasing the tensions but did not give all of its coverage over to "hawkish and inflammatory reportage in the first few weeks". The paper carried reports to highlight communal harmony. Gujarat Today was given praise for showing restraint and for the balanced reportage of

1056-577: A reflection on the India-US relationship since India gained independence that was originally published in the New India Digest in 2007, Embree observed, "Going to teach in India meant a chance to be involved in what seemed then, and still does fifty years later, the most fascinating event in twentieth century history." In 1957, Embree was offered a position at Columbia University , to work with

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1152-440: A unanimous vote to authorize central intervention was passed in the upper house of parliament . Members of the opposition made accusations that the government had failed to protect Muslim people in the worst rioting in India in more than 10 years. It is estimated that 230 mosques and 274 dargahs were destroyed during the violence. For the first time in the history of communal riots Hindu women took part, looting Muslim shops. It

1248-707: Is a loosely defined region of India consisting of western states of Republic of India . The Ministry of Home Affairs in its Western Zonal Council Administrative division includes the states of Goa , Gujarat , and Maharashtra along with the Union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu , while the Ministry of Culture and some historians also include the state of Rajasthan . The Geological Survey of India includes Maharashtra but excludes Rajasthan whereas Ministry of Minority Affairs includes Karnataka but excludes Rajasthan . Madhya Pradesh

1344-405: Is a unique blend of Indian and Portuguese cultures, as a result of it formerly being part of Portuguese India for 450 years. The state is popular amongst tourists for its beaches, Goan cuisine , temples , churches and architecture . The Churches and Convents of Goa have been declared as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO . The cuisine of Western India is diverse. Maharashtrian cuisine

1440-473: Is also often included and Haryana , western Uttar Pradesh and southern Punjab are sometimes included. Western India may also refer to the western half of India, i.e. all the states west of Delhi and Chennai , thus also including Punjab , Kerala and surrounding states. The region is highly industrialised, with a large urban population . Roughly, Western India is bounded by the Thar Desert in

1536-501: Is around 76%, higher than the national average of 70.5%. The population density is around 290 per square km. The average fertility rate is about 2.2, while the average household size is about 4.7. The states of Maharashtra, Gujarat and Goa are culturally varied and distinct. Maharashtrian culture derives from the ancient Hindu Vedic culture influenced deeply by the Maratha Empire. Maharashtrians take great pride in

1632-429: Is diverse and ranges from bland to fiery hot. Pohay , Shrikhand , Pav bhaji and Vada pav are good examples of Maharashtrian cuisine . Goan cuisine is dominated by the use of rice, coconut, seafood, kokum and cashew-nuts. With its distinct spices and medium of cooking as coconut oil, both vegetarian as well as non-vegetarian cuisine is equally popular. Gujarati cuisine is almost exclusively vegetarian. Gujarat

1728-529: Is estimated that up to 150,000 people were displaced during the violence. It is estimated that 200 police officers died while trying to control the violence, and Human Rights Watch reported that acts of exceptional heroism were committed by Hindus, Dalits and tribals who tried to protect Muslims from the violence. In the aftermath of the violence, it became clear that many attacks were focused not only on Muslim populations, but also on Muslim women and children. Organizations such as Human Rights Watch criticised

1824-460: Is one of three states in India, with prohibition on alcohol, along with Mizoram and Manipur . In contrast, Maharashtra has some of the best vineyards in India , with Nashik and Sangli districts being the country's biggest grape-producing districts. The region generates 24.00% of the national GDP of the country, with an annual growth rate of 14.5% as of 2006. The states generate about 23% of

1920-400: Is the most widely spoken language in Western India with about 73 million speakers, followed by Gujarati with about 46 million speakers and Konkani 2.5 million speakers, all of which are Indo-Aryan languages . As in other parts of India, a high level of multilingualism is seen with English and Hindi being spoken as additional languages in urban areas. The average literacy rate of West India

2016-679: The Indian government and the Gujarat state administration for failure to address the resulting humanitarian condition of victims who fled their homes for relief camps during the violence, the "overwhelming majority of them Muslim." According to Teesta Setalvad on 28 February in the districts of Morjari Chowk and Charodia Chowk in Ahmedabad of all forty people who had been killed by police shooting were Muslim. An international fact-finding committee formed of all women international experts from US, UK, France, Germany and Sri Lanka reported, "sexual violence

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2112-709: The Mahi , Narmada , Tapi , Godavari , Zuari , Mandovi , Krishna , Ghaggar , Chambal and many other smaller tributaries of other rivers. The climate varies between tropical monsoon , tropical savanna , semi arid and desert . The coastal regions experience little seasonal variations although the temperatures range between 20 °C to 38 °C. Mumbai and northern Konkan regions experience cooler winters with minimum temperatures hovering around 12 °C. Interior Maharashtra experiences hot summers with maximum temperatures averaging 40 °C and mild winters with minimum temperatures averaging about 10 °C. Pune,

2208-651: The Maratha Empire , and many places in Maharashtra are named after the founder of the Empire, Shivaji . Marathi literature and cinema are popular in the state as well as across India. Bollywood has had a huge impact on the lifestyle and culture of this part of India as the industry is primarily located in Mumbai. Gujarati culture is a blend of Indian culture and foreign influence. It has been influenced by

2304-597: The Naroda Patiya massacre that took place directly adjacent to a police training camp; the Gulbarg Society massacre where Ehsan Jafri , a former parliamentarian , was among those killed; and several incidents in Vadodara city. Scholars studying the 2002 riots state that they were premeditated and constituted a form of ethnic cleansing , and that the state government and law enforcement were complicit in

2400-511: The Parsis , who migrated to Gujarat from Persia about a 1000 years ago. Gujarat also saw Turkic and Mughal conquests, as well as a constant stream of back and forth migrations to and from Sindh and Rajasthan, which helped shape the unique cultural landscape of the state. Cultural Events like Rann Utsav, International Kite Festival and Global Garba festivals have been started in Gujarat to showcase its culture internationally. Goa's culture

2496-677: The Punjab to the sea, including the Delta and the island of Kutch ), Gurjara (which comprised Western Rajputana and the Indian Desert ), and Balabhi (which comprised the peninsula of Gujarat , with a small portion of the adjacent coast). Before the partition of India , the now-Pakistani territories of Sindh and Balochistan were also included in this region. In art history, the term normally covers just Gujarat and Rajasthan, which tend to move together in terms of style. Western India has

2592-602: The Rapid Action Force had been deployed to sensitive areas in Godhra. Gordhan Zadafia , the Minister of State for Home, stated that he believed there would be no retaliation from the Hindu community. Once troops were airlifted in on 1 March, Modi stated that the violence was no longer as intense as it had been and that it would soon be brought under control. The violence continued for 3 months with no intervention from

2688-1279: The Woodrow Wilson Center , the Library of Congress , and the United States Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (since renamed the Department of Health and Human Services). Embree was an active member of the Kashmir Study Group and the Council on Foreign Relations , and was a member of the Columbia University Society of Senior Scholars. He was the President of the Taraknath Das Foundation, which awards fellowships to Indian students doing graduate studies in American universities. The Association of Indians and Americans honored Embree in 1982 for his ″unique contribution to greater understanding of

2784-478: The court that the foetus was intact in the woman's womb. Vandana Shiva stated that "Young boys have been taught to burn, rape and kill in the name of Hindutva." Dionne Bunsha , writing on the Gulbarg Society massacre and murder of Ehsan Jafri , has said that when Jafri begged the crowd to spare the women, he was dragged into the street and forced to parade naked for refusing to say "Jai Shri Ram." He

2880-670: The second-largest gross domestic product of any region in India. Parts of Gujarat were the site of Indus Valley civilisation . Places have been uncovered in Gujarat at Lothal , Surkotada , and around Ghaggar river in Rajasthan . The Western Indian region was ruled by the Rashtrakuta Empire, the Maurya Empire, the Gupta Empire , Rajputs , Satavahanas , Western Satraps , Indo Greeks , Kadambas etc. in

2976-452: The tax revenues of the country. More than 85% of the households have access to electricity with about 55% owning a television. Agriculture employs most people in the region, while services have largest share in the total GDP. 19°00′00″N 74°09′00″E  /  19.0000°N 74.1500°E  / 19.0000; 74.1500 Ainslie Thomas Embree Embree was born in the small village of Sunnyside, near Port Hawkesbury , on

2002 Gujarat riots - Misplaced Pages Continue

3072-581: The 11 men to surrender to the jail authorities within 15 days. In 2005, the Vadodara fast-track court acquitted 108 people accused of murdering two youths during a mob attack on a group of displaced Muslims returning under police escort to their homes in Avdhootnagar. The court passed strictures against the police for failing to protect the people under their escort and failing to identify the attackers they had seen. Nine people were convicted of killing

3168-730: The Godhra train burning case and key cases of post-Godhra violence. The former CBI Director R. K. Raghavan was appointed to chair the Team. Christophe Jaffrelot notes that the SIT was not as independent as commonly believed. Other than Raghavan, half of the six members of the team were recruited from the Gujarat police, and the Gujarat High Court was still responsible for appointing judicial officers. The SIT made efforts to appoint independent prosecutors but some of them resigned due to their inability to function. No efforts were made to protect

3264-509: The Gujarat government as "modern day Neros" who looked elsewhere when innocent women and children were burning and then interfered with prosecution. Following this direction, police identified nearly 1,600 cases for re-investigation, arrested 640 accused and launched investigations against forty police officers for their failures. In March 2008, the Supreme Court ordered the setting up of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to reinvestigate

3360-449: The Hindu community for the train burning. Modi stated that the violence was no longer as intense as it had been and that it would soon be brought under control, and that if the situation warranted it, the police would be supported by deploying the army. A shoot-to-kill order was issued. However the troop deployment was withheld by the state government until 1 March, when the most severe violence had ended. After more than two months of violence

3456-649: The Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. From 1978–80, Embree served as the counselor for cultural affairs at the American Embassy, New Delhi, and from 1994–95, he served as consultant to the American ambassador in India, Frank Wisner. Embree was a fellow of Saint Antony's College of the University of Oxford . A prolific writer, he was editor-in-chief of the four-volume Encyclopedia of Asian History (1989) and editor of

3552-713: The Shah Alam area. Hindu doctors were asked to stop practicing in Muslim areas after one Hindu doctor was stabbed. Frontline magazine reported that in Ahmedabad of the 249 bodies recovered by 5 March, thirty were Hindu. Of the Hindus that had been killed, thirteen had died as a result of police action and several others had died while attacking Muslim owned properties. Despite the relatively few attacks by Muslim mobs on Hindu neighbourhoods, twenty-four Muslims were reported to have died in police shootings. The events in Gujarat were

3648-601: The US Embassy at Delhi during the administration of US President Jimmy Carter . He retired in 1991, but continued to write and teach at Columbia, Brown University and the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies . He served as consultant to the American ambassador in India, Frank Wisner , in 1994–95. Embree was Professor of History Emeritus, Columbia University, 1958–1991. While at Columbia, he served as Director of Contemporary Civilization of

3744-515: The United Church of Canada to teach in India at Indore Christian College: he taught European history and acted as a college administrator; she taught sociology. They remained in Indore for 10 years, from 1947 to 1957; their 2 children (Ralph Thomas and Margaret Louise) were both born in India. During their decade in India, Embree became increasingly interested in and committed to understanding

3840-483: The accused were acquitted. The Indian Supreme Court , acting on a petition by social activist Teesta Setalvad , ordered a retrial outside Gujarat in which nine accused were found guilty in 2006. A key witness, Zaheera Sheikh , who repeatedly changed her testimony during the trials and the petition was found guilty of perjury . During the Gujarat riots, a pregnant woman named Bilkis Bano was gang-raped and numerous members of her family were killed. After police dismissed

3936-830: The ancients times. During the medieval age, the area was under the rule of the Vaghela dynasty , the Gujarat Sultanate , and the Delhi Sultanate . Thereafter, the area was under Mughal rule. Later, the Maratha Empire which arose in western Maharashtra came to dominate a major portion of the Indian sub-continent. However, its defeat by the British in the Anglo-Maratha wars left most of India under colonial rule. The region then experienced great upheavals during

2002 Gujarat riots - Misplaced Pages Continue

4032-516: The attacks as state terrorism rather than "communal riots" due to the lack of state intervention. Many politicians downplayed the incidents, claiming that the situation was under control. One minister who spoke with Rediff.com stated that though the circumstances were tense in Baroda and Ahmedabad, the situation was under control, and that the police who had been deployed were enough to prevent any violence. The deputy superintendent of police stated that

4128-500: The attacks on the Muslim community that began on 28 February (the day after the train fire) as highly coordinated with mobile phones and government-issued printouts listing the homes and businesses of Muslims. Attackers arrived in Muslim communities across the region in trucks, wearing saffron robes and khaki shorts, bearing a variety of weapons. In many cases, attackers damaged or burned Muslim-owned or occupied buildings while leaving adjacent Hindu buildings untouched. Although many calls to

4224-674: The case against her assailants, she approached the National Human Rights Commission of India and petitioned the Supreme Court seeking a reinvestigation. The Supreme Court granted the motion, directing the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to take over the investigation. CBI appointed a team of experts from the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) Delhi and All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) under

4320-407: The committee stated that: A chilling technique, absent in pogroms unleashed hitherto but very much in evidence this time in a large number of cases, was the deliberate destruction of evidence. Barring a few, in most instances of sexual violence, the women victims were stripped and paraded naked, then gang-raped, and thereafter quartered and burnt beyond recognition. . . . The leaders of

4416-426: The eleven men sentenced to life imprisonment in the case. The judge who sentenced the rapists said the early release set a bad precedent by the Gujarat government and warned that the move would have wide ramifications. The panel which granted remission included two legislators from the BJP, which was the state government at that time, former BJP Godhra municipal councillor, and a BJP women wing member. A BJP MLA, one of

4512-409: The federal government until May. Local and state-level politicians were seen leading violent mobs, restraining the police and arranging the distribution of weapons, leading investigative reports to conclude that the violence was "engineered and launched." Throughout the violence, attacks were made in full view of police stations and police officers who did not intervene. In many instances, police joined

4608-631: The findings of the Shah-Nanavati commission would support the view presented by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), as Shah was "their man" and Nanavati could be bribed. In February 2011, the trial court convicted 31 people and acquitted 63 others based on the murder and conspiracy provisions of the Indian Penal Code , saying the incident was a "pre-planned conspiracy." Of those convicted, 11 were sentenced to death and

4704-402: The first instance of communal violence in India in the age of 24-hour news coverage and were televised worldwide. This coverage played a central role in the politics of the situation. Media coverage was generally critical of the Hindu right; however, the BJP portrayed the coverage as an assault on the honor of Gujaratis and turned the hostility into an emotive part of their electoral campaign. With

4800-435: The guidance and leadership of Professor T. D. Dogra to exhume the mass graves to establish the identity and cause of death of the victims. The team successfully located and exhumed the remains of the victims. The trial of the case was transferred out of Gujarat and the central government was directed to appoint a public prosecutor. Charges were filed in a Mumbai court against nineteen people as well as six police officials and

4896-593: The high security zone and just 500 meters from the office of the chief minister. According to Scott W. Hibbard, the violence had been planned far in advance, and that similar to other instances of communal violence the Bajrang Dal , the VHP and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) all took part in the attacks. Following the attack on the train the VHP called for a statewide bandh (strike), and

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4992-465: The history faculty at Duke University (1969–1973). He chaired the history department and served in a number of other administrative posts at Columbia, including Acting Dean of the School of International and Public Affairs . Nevertheless, his commitment to South Asian studies was not limited to the classroom. He returned to India frequently for study trips, and for two years served as Cultural Counselor in

5088-621: The island of Cape Breton in Nova Scotia , Canada, where he spent his childhood. He was one of 5 children (Vivian, Gerald, Jesse, and Elliott) born to Ira Thomas Embree and his wife, Margaret (née Langley). At the age of 16, he earned a scholarship to attend Dalhousie University in Halifax, earning his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1941. Although he considered himself a pacificist, he joined the Royal Canadian Air Force and

5184-549: The minority Muslim population of Gujarat for the next year. According to official figures, the riots ended with 1,044 dead, 223 missing, and 2,500 injured. Of the dead, 790 were Muslim and 254 Hindu. The Concerned Citizens Tribunal Report, estimated that as many as 1,926 may have been killed. Other sources estimated death tolls in excess of 2,000. Many brutal killings and rapes were reported on as well as widespread looting and destruction of property. Narendra Modi , then Chief Minister of Gujarat and later Prime Minister of India ,

5280-402: The mobs even raped young girls, some as young as 11 years old . . . before burning them alive. . . . Even a 20-day-old infant, or a fetus in the womb of its mother, was not spared. An autopsy report conducted on the deceased women states that the doctor who conducted the post-mortem, found the foetus intact. The doctor, who had conducted the autopsy said to

5376-463: The mobs in perpetrating violence. At one Muslim locality, of the twenty-nine deaths, sixteen were caused by police firing into the locality. Some rioters even had printouts of voter registration lists, allowing them to selectively target Muslim properties. Selective targeting of properties was shown by the destruction of the offices of the Muslim Wakf board which was located within the confines of

5472-642: The north, the Vindhya Range in the east and north and the Arabian Sea in the west. A major portion of Western India shares the Thar Desert with North India and Pakistan and the Deccan Plateau with South and Central India . In ancient history, Western India was divided into three great states according to Hwen Thsang , namely Sindh (which comprised the whole valley of the Indus from

5568-525: The northern semi arid region and the southern humid region submerge. The Western Ghats lie along the coast of South Gujarat, Maharashtra and Goa. The Deccan plains of the Vidarbha , Marathwada in central and eastern Maharashtra define the rest of the region. The vegetation varies from tropical rainforests along the Konkan coast to thorny bushes and shrubs in northern Gujarat. The rivers in this region are

5664-427: The noted sinologist Wm. Theodore de Bary in establishing an independent program within the Department of History that would be dedicated the study of the subcontinent. While helping to create what became one of the world's most highly regarded programs for South Asian studies, Embree received his PhD in history in 1960. Embree remained at Columbia University for most of his academic career, apart from an appointment to

5760-481: The official story of the attack on the train (that it was organized and carried out by people under orders from Pakistan) was entirely baseless. The Union government led by the Indian National Congress party in 2005 also set up a committee to probe the incident, headed up by retired Supreme Court judge Umesh Chandra Banerjee . The committee concluded that the fire had begun inside the train and

5856-471: The other 20 to life in prison. Maulvi Umarji, presented by the Nanavati-Shah commission as the prime conspirator, was acquitted along with 62 others accused for lack of evidence. Following the attack on the train, the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) called for a statewide bandh , or strike. Although the Supreme Court had declared such strikes to be unconstitutional and illegal, and despite the common tendency for such strikes to be followed by violence, no action

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5952-439: The panellists, has said that some of the convicts are "Brahmins" with good 'sanskaar' or values. After being released from the jail, they were welcomed with sweets and their feet touched in respect. On 8 January 2024, Supreme Court of India ruled that the Gujarat government was not competent to grant remission and struck down the relief granted, in August 2022, to the 11 men who were sentenced to life imprisonment. The court ordered

6048-434: The peoples of India and America.″ Embree was awarded multiple citations and honorary degrees, including an honorary Doctor of Letters from Columbia University in 2009. One of the citations of which he was most proud, however, was Columbia University's Mark Van Doren Award (1985), a student-selected commendation to a professor "who has distinguished himself in scholarship and teaching and who possesses...humanity, devotion to

6144-442: The police were made from victims, they were told by the police that "we have no orders to save you." In some cases, the police fired on Muslims who attempted to defend themselves. The rioters used mobile phones to coordinate their attacks. By the end of the day on 28 February a curfew had been declared in 27 towns and cities across the state. A government minister stated that although the circumstances were tense in Baroda and Ahmedabad,

6240-441: The rapes were part of a well-organized, deliberate and pre-planned strategy, and which facts place the violence into the categories of political pogrom and genocide. Other acts of violence against women included acid attacks , beatings and the killing of women who were pregnant. Children were also killed in front of their parents. George Fernandes in a discussion in parliament on the violence caused widespread furor in his defense of

6336-470: The revised Sources of Indian Tradition (1988), Asia in Western and World History (with Carol Gluck, 1997), and India's World and U.S. Scholars: 1947–1997 (with others, 1998). Professor Embree also has authored Imagining India: Essays on Indian History (1989), Utopias in Conflict: Religion and Nationalism in India (1990), and India's Search for National Identity (1988). His last book, Frontiers Into Borders: Defining South Asia States 1757-1857 (2020)

6432-411: The rich history and culture of the subcontinent. In a 2009 interview with Mark Juergensmeyer of the University of California at Santa Barbara , Embree noted that he and his wife had been drawn to teach in India because, as young people who had served during World War II (Suzanne had served in the US Navy WAVES as a cryptanalyst), they were inspired by Mahatma Gandhi's messages of peace. Decades later, in

6528-405: The role of Muslims in the on-going violence in Indian-administered Kashmir and other parts of India." In support of this, the US Ambassador at-large for International Religious Freedom , John Hanford , expressed concern over religious intolerance in Indian politics and said that while the rioters may have been aided by state and local officials, he did not believe that the BJP-led central government

6624-407: The situation was under control, and that the police who had been deployed were enough to prevent any violence. In Baroda, the administration imposed a curfew in seven areas of the city. M. D. Antani , then the deputy superintendent of police, deployed the Rapid Action Force to sensitive areas in Godhra. Gordhan Zadafia , the Minister of State for Home, believed there would be no retaliation from

6720-413: The state government of being complicit in the attacks, either in failing to exert any effort to quell the violence or for actively planning and executing the attacks themselves. The United States Department of State ultimately banned Narendra Modi from travelling to the United States due to his alleged role in the attacks. These allegations center around several ideas. First, the state did little to quell

6816-425: The state government used the statement to incite violence against the Muslim community by claiming, without proof, that the attack on the train was carried out by Pakistan's intelligence agency and that local Muslims had conspired with them to attack Hindus in the state. False stories were also printed by local newspapers which claimed that Muslim people had kidnapped and raped Hindu women. Numerous accounts describe

6912-456: The state government, saying that this was not the first time that women had been violated and raped in India. Children were killed by being burnt alive and those who dug the mass graves described the bodies interred within them as "burned and butchered beyond recognition." Children and infants were speared and held aloft before being thrown into fires. Describing the sexual violence perpetrated against Muslim women and girls, Renu Khanna writes that

7008-650: The state took no action to prevent this. The Concerned Citizens Tribunal (CCT) report includes testimony of the then Gujarat BJP minister Haren Pandya (since murdered), who testified about an evening meeting convened by Modi the evening of the train burning. At this meeting, officials were instructed not to obstruct the Hindu rage following the incident. The report also highlighted a second meeting, held in Lunawada village of Panchmahal district , attended by state ministers Ashok Bhatt , and Prabhatsinh Chauhan, among other BJP and RSS leaders, where "detailed plans were made on

7104-455: The struggle for Indian Independence . Gandhi 's Dandi March took place in Gujarat. The region became part of independent India in 1947, and the present state boundaries were drawn based on linguistic considerations in 1956. The region consists of the predominantly arid to semi-arid region of Saurashtra and Kutch in the North. The region South of that of Cambay and Southern Gujarat makes

7200-411: The survivors reported that it "consisted of forced nudity, mass rapes, gang-rapes, mutilation, insertion of objects into bodies, cutting of breasts, slitting the stomach and reproductive organs, and carving of Hindu religious symbols on women's body parts." The Concerned Citizens' Tribunal characterised the use of rape "as an instrument for the subjugation and humiliation of a community." Testimony heard by

7296-417: The train caught fire with many people trapped inside. In the resulting conflagration, 59 people, including women and children, burned to death. The government of Gujarat set up Gujarat High Court judge K. G. Shah as a one-man commission to look into the incident, but following outrage among families of victims and in the media over Shah's alleged closeness to Modi, retired Supreme Court judge G.T. Nanavati

7392-823: The undergraduate Asian civilization program; as Chairman of the Middle East Languages and Cultures Department and the History Department; as Director of the Southern Asian Institute; and as Acting Dean of the School of International and Public Affairs. He began his teaching career in India, at Indore Christian College, an affiliated college of Agra University , 1948–58; he also taught at Duke University from 1969 to 1973 and, after his retirement from Columbia in 1991, he continued his scholarly work, teaching at Columbia, Brown University and

7488-421: The use of kerosene and petrol for arson and other methods of killing." The Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind claimed in 2002 that some regional Congress workers collaborated with the perpetrators of the violence. Dipankar Gupta believes that the state and police were clearly complicit in the violence, but that some officers were outstanding in the performance of their duties, such as Himanshu Bhatt and Rahul Sharma . Sharma

7584-456: The violence receding in April, a peace meeting was arranged at Sabarmati Ashram , a former home of Mahatma Gandhi . Hindutva supporters and police officers attacked almost a dozen journalists. The state government banned television news channels critical of the government's response, and local stations were blocked. Two reporters working for STAR News were assaulted several times while covering

7680-472: The violence that occurred. On the morning of 27 February 2002, the Sabarmati Express , returning from Ayodhya to Ahmedabad, stopped near the Godhra railway station. The passengers were Hindu pilgrims, returning from Ayodhya. An argument erupted between the train passengers and the vendors on the railway platform. The argument became violent and, under uncertain circumstances, four coaches of

7776-484: The violence, with attacks continuing well through the Spring. The historian Gyanendra Pandey described these attacks as state terrorism, saying that they were not riots but "organized political massacres." According to Paul Brass the only conclusion from the evidence which is available points to the methodical coordination of an anti-Muslim pogrom which was carried out with exceptional brutality . The media has described

7872-467: The violence. Critical reporting on the Gujarat government's handling of the situation helped bring about the Indian government's intervention in controlling the violence. The Editors Guild rejected the charge that graphic news coverage aggravated the situation, saying that the coverage exposed the "horrors" of the riots as well as the "supine if not complicit" attitude of the state, helping to propel remedial action. Many scholars and commentators have accused

7968-589: The violence. On a return trip from having interviewed Modi when their car was surrounded by a crowd, one of the crowd claimed that they would be killed should they be a member of a minority community. The Editors Guild of India, in its report on media ethics and coverage on the incidents stated that the news coverage was exemplary, with only a few minor lapses. The local newspapers Sandesh and Gujarat Samachar , however, were heavily criticised. The report states that Sandesh had headlines which would "provoke, communalize and terrorize" people. The newspaper also used

8064-473: The witnesses and Raghavan himself was said to be an "absentee investigator," who spent only a few days every month in Gujarat, with the investigations being conducted by the remainder of the team. As of April 2013, 249 convictions had been secured of 184 Hindus and 65 Muslims. Thirty-one of the Muslim convictions were for the massacre of Hindus in Godhra. The Best Bakery murder trial received wide attention after witnesses retracted testimony in court and all of

8160-481: Was accused of condoning the violence, as were police and government officials who allegedly directed the rioters and gave lists of Muslim-owned properties to them. In 2012, Modi was cleared of complicity in the violence by Special Investigation Team (SIT) appointed by the Supreme Court of India . The SIT also rejected claims that the state government had not done enough to prevent the riots. The Muslim community

8256-401: Was added as chairman of the now two-person commission. In 2003, The Concerned Citizens Tribunal (CCT) concluded that the fire had been an accident. Several other independent commentators have also concluded that the fire itself was almost certainly an accident, saying that the initial cause of the conflagration has never been conclusively determined. Historian Ainslie Thomas Embree stated that

8352-589: Was assigned to Britain's Royal Air Force in England, serving as a navigator (Pilot Officer rank) on Halifax bombers flying nighttime missions during World War II. On his return home, he continued his studies at Dalhousie University and at Pine Hill Divinity Hall (now the Atlantic School of Theology). He was ordained as a minister in the United Church of Canada in 1946, and subsequently was awarded

8448-610: Was being used as a strategy for terrorizing women belonging to minority community in the state." It is estimated that at least 250 girls and women were gang raped and then burned to death. Children were force fed petrol and then set on fire, pregnant women were gutted and then had their unborn child's body shown to them. In the Naroda Patiya mass grave of ninety-six bodies, forty-six were women. Rioters also flooded homes and electrocuted entire families inside. Violence against women also included them being stripped naked, violated with objects, and then killed. According to Kalpana Kannabiran

8544-551: Was involved in inciting the riots. Prosecution of the perpetrators of the violence hampered by witnesses being bribed or intimidated and the perpetrators' names being deleted from the charge sheets. Local judges were also biased. After more than two years of acquittals, the Supreme Court of India stepped in, transferring key cases to the Bombay High Court and ordering the police to reopen two thousand cases that had been previously closed. The Supreme Court also lambasted

8640-513: Was most likely accidental. However, the Gujarat High Court ruled in 2006 that the matter was outside the jurisdiction of the union government, and that the committee was therefore unconstitutional. After six years of going over the details, Nanavati-Mehta Commission submitted its preliminary report which concluded that the fire was an act of arson, committed by a mob of one to two thousand locals. Maulvi Husain Haji Ibrahim Umarji,

8736-570: Was published posthumously. He has contributed chapters to many books on India and Southern Asia. At Columbia, Embree helped develop a broad-based study program on Asia and integrated Indian and Asian studies into the Columbia College Core Curriculum. His 1958 book, Sources of Indian Tradition , is widely considered the core text of the intellectual history of South Asian civilizations. He served on committees of many other institutions dealing with South Asia, including

8832-462: Was reported that Muslims attacked Dalits in the Danilimda area of Ahmedabad. In Himatnagar , a man was reportedly found dead with both his eyes gouged out. The Sindhi Market and Bhanderi Pole areas of Ahmedabad were also reportedly attacked by mobs. India Today reported on 20 May 2002 that there were sporadic attacks on Hindus in Ahmedabad. On 5 May, Muslim rioters attacked Bhilwas locality in

8928-461: Was reported to have reacted with anger and disbelief. In July 2013, allegations were made that the SIT had suppressed evidence. That December, an Indian court upheld the earlier SIT report and rejected a petition seeking Modi's prosecution. In April 2014, the Supreme Court expressed satisfaction over the SIT's investigations in nine cases related to the violence, and rejected a plea contesting the SIT report as "baseless". Though officially classified as

9024-531: Was reported to have said "I don't think any other job would have allowed me to save so many lives." Human Rights Watch has reported on acts of exceptional heroism by Hindus, Dalits and tribals who tried to protect Muslims from the violence. In response to allegations of state involvement, Gujarat government spokesman, Bharat Pandya, told the BBC that the rioting was a spontaneous Hindu backlash fueled by widespread anger against Muslims. He said "Hindus are frustrated over

9120-496: Was taken by the state to prevent the strike. The government did not attempt to stop the initial outbreak of violence across the state. Independent reports indicate that the state BJP president Rana Rajendrasinh had endorsed the strike, and that Modi and Rana used inflammatory language which worsened the situation. Then-Chief Minister Narendra Modi declared that the attack on the train had been an act of terrorism, and not an incident of communal violence. Local newspapers and members of

9216-400: Was then beheaded and thrown onto a fire, after which rioters returned and burned Jafri's family, including two small boys, to death. After the massacre Gulbarg remained in flames for a week. The Times of India reported that over ten thousand Hindus were displaced during the violence. According to police records, 157 riots after the Godhra incident were started by Muslims. In Mahajan No Vando,

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