‘Weaponisation of Hindu Festivals: Communal Violence during Ram Navami Processions in 2022-2023’ |
Rallies during festivals like Ram Navami are a way to stitch an uniform Hindu identity, said advocate Irfan Engineer during a discussion on Friday on the book ‘Weaponisation of Hindu Festivals: Communal Violence during Ram Navami Processions in 2022-2023’.
The book, authored by Engineer and Neha Dabhade reports on 11 incidents of violence that followed Ram Navami processions across the country.
Remarking that their study found that the traditional Ram Navami processions in India’s towns and professions saw the participation of Muslims, Engineer said that it was the rallies led by right-wing political groups like Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal that set off riots in their wake. “The first procession that is traditional passes off peacefully, but the second ones are held to provoke Muslims,” said Engineer, director of the Centre for Study of Society and Secularism.
Engineer said that in a small city like Ujjain, one of the cities that are featured in the book, the Ram Navami processions went on for three hours. In Khargone, a town in Madhya Pradesh, the first Ram Navami processions did not spark any violence, but the next one by right-wing groups caused riots when Muslims reacted to what they saw as a provocation. In Koderma, Jharkhand, videos of a procession showed participants dancing and abusing Muslims, said Engineer.
In most cases reported in the book, the processions were followed by incidents of stones thrown on the participants, precipitating riots. It was noted at the discussion that while police have been partisan in many instances of riots, they acted impartially when they were given clear orders to prevent any disturbances. Participants also said that many Hindus felt aggrieved that though they were the majority community they were given instructions on places to avoid during a celebration.
