In a petition moved by the Nagina Masjid Trust before Gujarat High Court the week before last, the Trust had pointed out that while notices under the Gujarat Municipalities Act were issued to nearby shops over alleged encroachment and these were demolished on May 15, the authorities also started demolishing other shops that were under the ownership of the petitioner Trust without due process and issuance of any notice.

The petitioners also stated that no official notice was issued to the Trust for the mosque demolition. They were only informally told by the authorities that the “petitioner and others may remove all the religious books, Quran and other revered articles from the Masjid till Friday (May 19) as the Masjid will be demolished after evening prayers”.

The Trust has submitted before the court that the mosque had been standing at the spot since 1926 in a part of the Trust’s land, which was registered in 1953. Some of the shops on other parts of the land – which have now been demolished – were given on rent by the Trust and Waqf over the years, the court was also told.

The Trust further also submitted proof that the mosque was “protected and could not be demolished, more particularly in view of provisions under the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991”, and given that the masjid is a Waqf property, no action could have been undertaken without the approval of the Waqf Board.

The court of Justice S V Pinto on Tuesday also issued notice to the authorities and sought that the Dahod authorities respond to the contentions raised in the petition by June 8, until when the authorities have been directed to maintain the status quo.

In another petition moved by Anjumane Mohammadi Jamat through its administrator and secretary Asgarali Ahmedali Rayli, it was contended by the petitioner that they apprehend demolition of another Mosque (masjid) although they have formally not been served with a notice by the Dahod authorities as is required under the Gujarat Municipalities Act. On Tuesday, Justice Pinto, after hearing both sides, disposed of the petition with an instruction to the government counsel that the petitioner be provided with an opportunity of a hearing before taking any coercive steps.

Justice Pinto directed the Dahod municipality to follow “due process of law and give an opportunity of hearing before taking any coercive actions and the petitioners must be allowed to put forward their case. The nagarpalika (municipality) shall give an opportunity of hearing to petitioners and give a reasoned order.”

May 20-21, 2023

 A mosque, believed to be around a century old, was among eight places of worship razed Saturday by the Dahod Smart City administration in Gujarat. Amid huge police deployment, the massive demolition drive began at the Nagina Mosque around 4.30 a.m.

The mosque was razed under a Smart City road widening project after the Masjid Trust failed to get relief from the Gujarat High Court or produce land record documents on Friday, officials said. Hours after the mosque demolition, four temples and three other dargahs were also razed.

As a part of two-tier security arrangements, around 450 police personnel were deployed for the 4.30 am demolition. The mosque was “demolished in a peaceful and amicable” manner, officials added.

“The Trust had sought time on its own until Friday to produce land records. The administration conceded to the request. But on Friday, the records it brought were not reliable,” Dahod Superintendent of Police Balram Meena, who is part of the district-level panel for the implementation of the Smart City Project, told the IE.

“On Friday evening, a meeting was held between the mosque members with the sub-divisional magistrate, Prant Officer, and chief officer of the municipality, among others, where the Trust members agreed to evacuate the premises on being given the option to demolish the structure on their own. We did not have to enter the premises as they had already evacuated the structure. The police deployment will remain but we do not anticipate any trouble,” Meena added.

Related:

Aftermath of Demolition Drive in Tughlakabad: Hunger and Homelessness Rife

Demolition of 3 Churches in BJP-Ruled Manipur for ‘Illegal Construction’ causes social media uproar

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Report of the National Commission for Minorities’ visit to Gujarat, October 13-17, 2006

On August 29, 2006, complaints from social activists were received by the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) on the plight of persons displaced as a result of communal violence in 2002. They pointed out that more than 5,000 Muslim families in Gujarat are staying in makeshift colonies in four districts of Gujarat. In view of the tense situation in their original place of residence, these people are unable to return. In the absence of basic amenities like safe drinking water, drainage, health education, etc, the condition of those living in these colonies is pitiable. They therefore requested the NCM to make a first-hand assessment of the entire issue by visiting the camps and to issue suitable directives to the government on the basis of their findings.

The matter was considered at a formal meeting of the commission held on September 7, 2006. At this meeting, it was decided that a three-member team, consisting of the vice chairman and two members, would visit Gujarat for this purpose over a period of three days (in the case of the vice chairman and member one) and five days (in the case of member two). The team visited a large number of camps. Member two visited 17 colonies in the districts of Panchmahal, Dahod, Sabarkantha and the city of Ahmedabad while the vice chairman and member one visited colonies in Ahmedabad and Sabarkantha. The team had an opportunity to interact with members of civil society, NGOs, groups involved in rehabilitation and with inhabitants of camps as well as those who had suffered as a result of the riots. On the third day the team had a long meeting with officials of the state government led by the chief secretary and finished up with a session with the chief minister of Gujarat. The main findings of the team are summarised below:

Observation, complaints and demands of residents of rehabilitation colonies

1. During its visit to the rehabilitation colonies, the NCM team was accompanied by district collectors in each of the four districts as well as by local government officials concerned with development, including district development officers (DDOs), taluka development officers (TDOs), officials of the revenue department, including talatis and mamlatdars, and by officials of the municipal authorities in nagar palika areas and the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation. The NCM team found that these colonies have come into existence after the violence of 2002. They house people who, prior to the riots, had lived elsewhere. Several colonies were found to be housing people who are witnesses in major legal cases.

2. The NCM team noted with concern that not a single colony was constructed by the state government, nor was any land allotted by the state government. All the colonies were built on land purchased at commercial rates primarily by a range of Muslim organisations and NGOs, including the Jamiat-ul-Ulema-e-Hind, Islamic Relief Committee, Gujarat Sarvojanik Relief Committee, etc. During the tour of the camps, members observed that residents were denied the most rudimentary civic amenities. They are deprived of potable water, sanitary facilities, street lights, schools and primary health care centres. The poor condition of the approach roads was repeatedly highlighted and the team heard reports of how in the absence of such roads even adolescent boys were drowned in the water that had collected near the village after the monsoon when the roads are submerged under several feet of water. The accumulated garbage, the slush and the puddles of water are a source of debilitating diseases, including some infectious ones.

3. The residents were frustrated by their inability to earn their own livelihood and to support themselves in the manner to which they were accustomed. Before the violence many of these people were small self-employed traders, artisans or industrialists. The violence put an end to their means of livelihood since their old clients were unwilling to use their services. The impression the team received is that very few of them were employed in service. In the new environment, they are unable to resume their earlier professions and because of this they find it difficult to survive.

4. NCM members examined the homes in several rehabilitation colonies and found evidence of abject poverty. With some exceptions, the houses contained little except for bedding and kitchen utensils. Despite these signs of poverty, the NCM found that many residents did not have ration cards. Even when ration cards were issued, most of the residents were given above the poverty line (APL) ration cards instead of below the poverty line (BPL) ration cards. This makes a big difference because BPL ration card holders are entitled to get food grains, cereals, kerosene and other basic consumer items at subsidised rates. Indeed, in several camps, especially in rural areas, the women without exception had just one major demand: they wanted BPL ration cards to be issued to them.

5. Interaction with members of civil society, NGOs and those affected by the riots threw up several problems. Residents complained about the atmosphere of insecurity in which they had to live. The team received several complaints about the hostile attitude of the police towards the residents of these colonies or their representatives who have taken up their problems with relevant authorities. In addition to the palpable sense of insecurity in which most of the victims continue to live, there were several complaints that compensation given for the extensive losses suffered by riot victims was completely inadequate. The team was told that the state government has restricted compensation in respect of damage to houses to a maximum of Rs 10, 000. Other complaints referred to the absence of suitable rehabilitation facilities since the state government concentrated only on immediate relief. Since the remit of the team was to look into issues of rehabilitation, we concentrated more closely on these.

The state government should prepare a special economic package for those displaced by the violence with a special focus on livelihood issues. For the self-employed, special efforts should be made to provide inputs like easy credit, raw material and marketing assistance

6. During interaction with the state government we raised the question of the sum of Rs 19.10 crore that had been returned by the government of Gujarat to the government of India since it had not been utilised. Government officials explained that there were no further demands under the particular heads under which these grants had been advanced by the Centre. As a result, auditors had pointed out to the ministries concerned in the government of India that the money should be returned if it could not be utilised for the purpose for which it was intended. The NCM team pointed out that if more people were covered under the relevant schemes it would be possible to utilise the entire amount allotted. In the course of our visits to the camps we found several people who are in need of funds under different schemes. If the state government was able to identify such people and extend the benefits of the scheme to them they would be able to utilise the entire money allotted.

7. The team noted with concern that the state was not in the forefront of the move to provide rehabilitation to those who could not return to their homes after the riots. As pointed out elsewhere, the state government has not been involved in constructing houses for the violence affected thus leaving the rehabilitation process to private organisations. If these private organisations were NGOs whose brief was to serve the riot affected that would still be appropriate. But this is not so. Some of the organisations that are active in the field are not purely philanthropic or service oriented. This space that should have been occupied by the state is now being held by bodies which have a definite agenda of their own. The implications that this has for the severity and well-being of civil society as a whole are extremely serious.

8. The NCM team received repeated demands by the victims as well as NGOs for a policy package that would be applicable to all displaced persons. In our view, the time has come to look at this question very seriously. Riots, disturbances or other calamities occur at regular intervals. If, as a result of such occurrences, people are displaced and are unable to return to their usual places of residence, some responsibility for their welfare must devolve on the state.

Main findings

Having visited several camp sites and interacted with members of civil society, victims and activists in the field, and government officials, the NCM came to the following conclusions:

1. The NCM found overwhelming evidence that there continue to be large numbers of internally displaced Muslim families in Gujarat who are living in subhuman conditions in colonies constructed entirely by NGOs.

2. They are not there by choice but because they are unable to return to their original place of habitation.

3. There has been no support from the state to compensate them for their loss of habitual place of residence and normal livelihood or provide basic services and livelihood options to allow them to live with dignity in their present location.

4. There has been no attempt to secure a safe environment or facilitate their return to their homes.

5. Local Muslim organisers who have tried to procure some rights and entitlements for these displaced survivors have found themselves the targets of threat and harassment by the local police.

6. Far from admitting that the inmates were in fact ‘internally displaced persons’, the authorities argued that they have chosen to willingly remain in the camps even after some of their family members had returned to their original habitation where they continued to live and ply their trades in absolute security. The NCM team found such reasoning to be erroneous. It noted that the residents of these colonies fear to return to the places they had fled partly because they have nothing left back home to return to and partly because many of them are eyewitnesses to murders, arson and looting during the communal violence.

Recommendations

The NCM would like to make three sets of recommendations to the state government and central government to improve the lot of residents of the makeshift camps: (1) Basic amenities and livelihood issues; (2) Central government economic package; (3) National policies on rehabilitation of internally displaced due to violence.

1. Basic amenities and livelihood in the rehabilitation colonies

Basic amenities must be provided in the camps of displaced victims. These would cover provision of safe drinking water, street lights, approach roads, etc. This should be done by the state government.

The government of India should agree that for a period of five years or until they continue to live in camps, whichever is earlier, all the inhabitants of such camps should be given BPL ration cards without going through the formalities laid down by the government for the issue of such cards. Similarly, widows should be allowed to claim their pension even if they have not applied within two years or even if they have sons above the age of 18.

The state government should prepare a special economic package for those displaced by the violence with a special focus on livelihood issues. For the self-employed, special efforts should be made to provide inputs like easy credit, raw material and marketing assistance. We strongly believe that this is a vital element in the rehabilitation scenario and that for it to be successfully implemented NGOs should be involved in it.

Wherever possible the state should take advantage of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Programme to cover able-bodied people in these camps and give them employment.

The government of India should return the amount of Rs 19.10 crore given back by the government of Gujarat. The state government should be asked to cover more beneficiaries under the schemes in an attempt to utilise the entire sum.

There should be a monitoring committee, consisting of representatives of the state government and civil society, which will be charged with the responsibility of ensuring that the schemes described above are properly implemented.

2. A special economic package for rehabilitation of internally displaced Muslim families in Gujarat

There is an urgent need for the central government to design and implement an immediate special economic package for the rehabilitation of internally displaced Muslim families in Gujarat. The package must include a set of inputs that would address the totality of livelihood concerns. In particular, attention must be paid to the availability of credit, raw material and marketing support, where necessary, with the help of NGOs.

3. A national policy on internal displacement due to violence

There is a need to design a national policy on internal displacement due to violence. Populations displaced due to sectarian, ethnic or communal violence should not be left to suffer for years together due to the lack of a policy and a justiciable framework for entitlements.

The preamble of the new Draft National Rehabilitation Policy 2006 (NRP 2006), which incorporates recommendations made by the National Advisory Council, provides a precedent and sensitive understanding of how displacement due to any reason affects people. It describes displacement in the following terms, "…displacement of people, depriving them of their land, livelihood and shelter, restricting their access to traditional resource bases and uprooting them from their socio-cultural environment. These have traumatic psychological and socio-cultural consequences on the displaced population…" However, the NRP 2006 pertains only to planned displacement due to development imperatives. When displacement takes place due to mass violence, entailing loss of life, property, family and loved ones, and a total destruction of the fabric of the socio-economic and cultural community, then the rehabilitation of the internally displaced population calls for a new framework of understanding.

When displacement takes place under conditions of fear and under constant direct threat in violation of Article 21 of the Constitution (guaranteeing the protection of life and personal liberty), the trauma and the conditions under which survivors face the future is considerably worsened. Further, when the threat of violence is perceived to be continuing (as it currently is in the state of Gujarat), in the absence of justice, and in a situation of discrimination and exclusion, the protection of people’s constitutional rights can only be sought through a national policy which clearly lays out a non-negotiable framework of entitlements. Any national policy on internal displacement due to violence must be designed to include provisions for immediate compensation and rehabilitation. A national policy on internal displacement due to violence must further take into account the displaced populations’ aspirations to ‘return to their home’ and make provisions to facilitate the return, if it is possible under conditions of safety and security, and to restore the displaced families to their original conditions of living.

A national policy on internal displacement due to violence must also lay down specified time frames for the implementation of a rehabilitation plan, and include an effective grievances redressal and monitoring mechanism.

Archived from Communalism Combat, July 2007 Year 13    No.124, Genocide's Aftermath Part II, For The Record 2

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Unchanged: Destroyed house in Shaikh Mohalla, Sardarpura, June 2006
 
Article 21 of the Constitution of India safeguards citizens from the state’s violation of their life and personal liberty. Moreover, the state is also required to prevent such a violation of fundamental rights by private individuals.

The state is duty bound to protect a threatened group or class of citizens from assault. If it fails to do so, it fails to perform its constitutional and statutory obligations. The state is bound to take every precautionary measure and act swiftly to curb riots and mass terror. Inaction or passivity on its part can result in the loss of life, limbs, livelihood, property and liberty, and the negation of Article 21. If the state is unable to do so and especially if its own officials are complicit in the execution of unconstitutional acts, it is liable to compensate for loss of life, limbs, livelihood, shelter and property.

In these circumstances, the state of Gujarat is constitutionally obliged to provide adequate and appropriate compensation to those who have lost their lives, limbs, houses, livelihood and property in the violence of 2002.

As far back as March 2003, legal action group, Citizens for Justice and Peace (CJP) and Communalism Combat had filed a petition in the Gujarat High Court challenging several questionable acts by the state of Gujarat with regard to compensation for the victim survivors of the genocide.

The total amount earmarked for relief by the government of Gujarat, including compensation for deaths, emergency rations in the relief camps and compensation for destroyed homes, was an abysmally low Rs 205 crore, of which the state received Rs 150 crore from the government of India. In February 2003 the Gujarat government even announced its decision to return Rs 19.10 crore to the central exchequer, stating that adequate compensation had been made.

The CJP petition queried the arbitrary disbursal of compensation, the returning of central funds unused when, in fact, paltry amounts had been paid to victims, and also demanded an enhancement of the compensation scheme. CJP and its team was then authorised by the court to inspect records in all state districts and city collectorates since there were gross discrepancies between amounts claimed by victims and those actually disbursed by the state.

In the course of this inspection as many as 8,358 survey forms were collected from 12 districts of Gujarat between 2003 and 2006. These violence affected households, which suffered losses averaging Rs 1.5 lakh each, were the total number included in the first survey. (CJP is now undertaking phase two, which will provide the complete picture.) Carefully collated by the CJP team, the data reproduced below highlights the extent of the state’s abdication of responsibility. In a mammoth exercise not attempted before, CJP has also undertaken to collate independent data related to about 80,000 families in Gujarat that should be completed a few months from now. This will offer comprehensive material on all issues of criminal justice (legal cases, etc), compensation and reparation for a vast section of the minority population in the state.

Ahmedabad

In Ahmedabad city, where there was maximum destruction, loss of life and property, a total of 1,007 households were surveyed. Of these, 30 per cent have received no compensation at all. Twenty per cent received between Rs 1,000-2,000 each; 20 per cent received between Rs 2,000-5,000 each; 14 per cent received between Rs 5,000-10,000 each and 16 per cent received more than Rs 10,000 each in compensation.

Anand

In Anand district, where a total of 1,146 households were surveyed, 24 per cent have received no compensation at all (these include victim survivors of some of the worst massacres in the genocide). Ten per cent received between Rs 1,000-2,000 each; 24 per cent received between Rs 2,000-5,000 each; 19 per cent received between Rs 5,000-10,000 each and 23 per cent received more than Rs 10,000 each in compensation.

Banaskantha

In Banaskantha district, where a total of 105 households were surveyed, 23 per cent have received no compensation at all. Two per cent received Rs 1,000-2,000 each; 16 per cent received Rs 2,000-5,000 each; 56 per cent received Rs 5,000-10,000 each and three per cent received more than Rs 10,000 each in compensation.

Bharuch

In Bharuch district, where a total of 50 households were surveyed, 10 per cent have received no compensation at all. Six per cent received Rs 2,000-5,000 each; 30 per cent received Rs 5,000-10,000 each and 54 per cent received more than Rs 10,000 each in compensation.

Bhavnagar

In Bhavnagar district, where a total of 359 households were surveyed, 23 per cent have received no compensation at all. Twenty-three per cent received Rs 1,000-2,000 each; 22 per cent received Rs 2,000-5,000 each; nine per cent received Rs 5,000-10,000 each and 23 per cent received more than Rs 10,000 each in compensation.

Dahod

In Dahod district, where a total of 91 households were surveyed, 18 per cent have received no compensation at all. Twelve per cent received Rs 1,000-2,000 each; 18 per cent received Rs 2,000-5,000 each; 14 per cent received Rs 5,000-10,000 each and 38 per cent received more than Rs 10,000 each in compensation.

Kheda

In Kheda district, where a total of 1,192 households were surveyed, 18 per cent have received no compensation at all while 12.5 per cent received Rs 1,000-2,000 each in compensation. Thirty-six per cent received Rs 2,000-5,000 each; 25.5 per cent received Rs 5,000-10,000 each and eight per cent received more than Rs 10,000 each in compensation.

Mehsana

In Mehsana district, where a total of 195 households were surveyed, 72 per cent have received no compensation at all. Two per cent received Rs 1,000-2,000 each; five per cent received Rs 2,000-5,000 each; four per cent received Rs 5,000-10,000 each and 17 per cent received more than Rs 10,000 each in compensation.

Panchmahal

In Panchmahal district, where a total of 441 households were surveyed, 15 per cent have received no compensation at all. Eight per cent received Rs 1,000-2,000 each; 10 per cent received Rs 2,000-5,000 each; 14 per cent received Rs 5,000-10,000 each and 52 per cent received more than Rs 10,000 each in compensation.

Patan

None of the 12 households surveyed in Patan district have received any compensation for homes destroyed.

Sabarkantha

In Sabarkantha district, where a total of 2,884 households were surveyed, 48 per cent have received no compensation at all. Six per cent received between Rs 1,000-2,000 each; 16 per cent received between Rs 2,000-5,000 each; 12 per cent received between Rs 5,000-10,000 each and 18 per cent received more than Rs 10,000 each in compensation.

Vadodara

In Vadodara district, where a total of 876 households were surveyed, 15 per cent have received no compensation at all. Ten per cent received Rs 1,000-2,000 each; 36 per cent received Rs 2,000-5,000 each; 25 per cent received Rs 5,000-10,000 each and 14 per cent received more than Rs 10,000 each in compensation.

The state of Gujarat’s studied disregard for reparation to victim survivors becomes even more evident from the existing condition of many homes that were attacked in some of the worst massacres of the genocide.

Nineteen homes were destroyed at Shaikh Mohalla in Sardarpura village, Mehsana district. Victim survivors photographed these homes on June 21, 2006. In these photographs, submitted to both the Gujarat High Court and the Supreme Court in July 2006, the extent of the damage is still clearly visible.

A total of 19 homes were destroyed but a meagre compensation, a sum of Rs 39,050, has been paid to the victims. This for a case involving mass carnage – a case that is currently under scrutiny at the Supreme Court (the trial having been stayed on November 21, 2003). Indeed, the Gujarat government’s attitude to the hapless victims of a monumental tragedy needs no further elucidation.

Similarly, at three locales in Ode village of Anand district – Malu Bhagol, Surivali Bhagol and Piraveli Bhagol, 275 homes were destroyed. The totality of the damage can be seen even today. A total sum of Rs 23,22,750 (including miscellaneous compensation expenses) has been paid to the victims in Ode. Victim survivors photographed these homes on June 22, 2006. Photographs of their homes in their current state alongside photographs taken in 2002 as well as a chart showing the extent of damage and the actual compensation paid have all been placed before the courts.

It is clear from these documents and photographs that the amounts paid as compensation are woefully inadequate where the damage to victim survivors, their homes, is immense. Equally clear is that this is no typical instance of administrative negligence or inadequacy. It appears to be a deliberate attempt by the state of Gujarat to shirk their constitutional obligations and deny citizens their constitutional rights.

Compensation for death

The Gujarat state has paid out a mere Rs 1.5 lakh (Rs 90,000 in cash and Rs 60,000 in Narmada Bonds) as compensation to the next of kin of those killed in the violence of 2002.

Detailed memoranda to the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government (to the prime minister, Manmohan Singh, the union home minister, Shivraj Patil, minister for minority affairs, AR Antulay, and UPA chairperson, Sonia Gandhi), not to mention three public meetings held by victim survivors, pointed out these glaring inadequacies.

Between 2002 and 2006, CJP had been pursuing the matter legally and through advocacy with the political class. CJP and its team worked out a reasoned basis for the actual amount that should be paid as compensation for death given judicial precedents set after the 1984 anti-Sikh carnage. They argued that the amount declared by the state of Gujarat was inadequate and arbitrary, and amounted to a failure on the part of the state to fulfil its constitutional obligations.

In April 2007, a team of representatives from various districts of Gujarat presented this data to union home minister, Shivraj Patil, and the chairman of the National Commission for Minorities (NCM). The delegation also met the general secretaries of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), Prakash Karat, and the Communist Party of India, AB Bardhan.

A significant landmark with regard to compensation for riot victims was a ruling of the Delhi High Court six years prior to the Gujarat violence. In 1996 the Delhi High Court directed the payment of Rs two lakh plus interest from 1984 onwards (amounting to a total of Rs 3.5 lakh) as compensation for those killed in the anti-Sikh riots of 1984. On that basis, and allowing for an average seven per cent annual rate of inflation from 1996 to 2002, the amount of compensation for victims of the Gujarat genocide should be approximately Rs three lakh, with the interest on this amount being around Rs one lakh. Thus the amount of compensation for those killed in the Gujarat violence of 2002 would be over Rs four lakh each.

Following this rationale, it was argued that the Gujarat government’s ceiling of Rs 1.5 lakh, and the payment of Rs 60,000 of this in bonds, was wholly illegal, arbitrary and unconstitutional. CJP and its counsel maintained that the amount should be in consonance with the state’s obligations under Article 14 (guaranteeing equality before the law) and Article 21 of the Constitution of India and should therefore be fixed at Rs four lakh as detailed above. Compensation for injuries/disabilities sustained should be pro rata or proportional to this amount.

Sexual violence

One of the many unfortunate characteristics of the post-Godhra violence in Gujarat was the numerous attacks on women and children, including several instances of rape – a fact also acknowledged by the state home department. However, the Gujarat government’s compensation scheme contained no compensation or reparation amounts for women and children victims of violence. This was pointed out to the Supreme Court through the CJP’s detailed analysis of the compensation scheme in August 2004. At the time, the apex court passed an order directing that any suggestions made by the petitioners (CJP) for enhancement of the compensation scheme should be considered in the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) before the Gujarat High Court.

By August 2002 the government had itself documented that there had been 185 cases of attacks on women (of which 100 were in Ahmedabad city) and 57 attacks on children (of which 33 were in Ahmedabad). In all, 225 women and 65 children were killed. The government also recorded 11 cases of rape: three cases in Ahmedabad, one in Anand, three in Dahod and four in Panchmahal.

In fact, the rape and sexual abuse of women was far more pervasive and the actual number of rape cases far exceeds the official figures. Many victims were killed and burnt beyond recognition. Others were too terrified to record complaints. At the Shah Alam relief camp in Ahmedabad, where many refugees of the violence took shelter, accounts of victim survivors indicated that a much larger number of rapes in fact took place. The same is true of other areas in Gujarat.

To date, no compensation has been paid to the victims of such heinous attacks. In the PIL before the Gujarat High Court, CJP has argued that constitutional obligations require the state to make full and appropriate compensation, of an amount not less than that made available in the case of death (i.e. Rs four lakh), to such helpless women and children.

Substantive reports on sexual violence by various Indian and international civil rights and women’s rights organisations have highlighted how the government of Gujarat failed to fulfil its obligations, under both national and international law, to protect its citizens. In particular, how the state government failed to protect Muslim women who were the targets of specific gendered forms of sexual violence.

Reports have highlighted how elements of the criminal justice system, including the police and the judiciary, failed in their constitutional duty to objectively record and investigate complaints and prosecute offences. They have also illustrated how the Gujarat government, authorities and trial courts failed to provide medical relief and secure medico-legal evidence from victims who had been sexually abused. Many of these findings also exposed a deficiency long recognised by Indian women’s rights activists and quasi-governmental bodies, including the Law Commission of India. The inadequacy of existing penal provisions relating to rape meant that many of the sexual crimes inflicted on women during the genocide fell outside the existing legislative framework and were thus not registered by the police.

A closer inspection of the handful of cases that have been registered – some of which are at advanced stages of investigation – also reveals the manifold failings of the judiciary in Gujarat. It also emphasises that but for the incessant and dogged efforts by victims and human rights activists to pursue these cases in court, they would never have come this far.

Destruction of homes

The position as regards compensation for houses that were damaged or destroyed is equally adverse. The Gujarat government fixed an arbitrary ceiling of Rs 50,000 as compensation for the destruction of homes and in most cases has paid only a pittance of this inadequate amount.

In its August 2002 report, the women’s parliamentary Committee on Empowerment of Women (WPC) noted that the Gujarat government had informed the committee that 4,954 houses (2,023 urban and 2,931 rural) had been "completely destroyed" and that the amount of compensation disbursed for the same was Rs 7.62 crore.

This would mean that an average of around Rs 15,000 was paid for each completely destroyed house. The construction of a house costs approximately Rs one lakh in rural areas and approximately Rs two to three lakh in the urban areas. As a result, nearly 5,000 families have been unable to rebuild their houses or make alternative provisions for their shelter or accommodation.

The committee recorded that it had been informed by the Gujarat government that 18,294 houses had been partially damaged (11,199 urban and 7,095 rural), for which Rs 15.55 crore had been paid as compensation. This works out to an average of a mere Rs 8,500 per house. The committee in fact noted that a number of recipients had shown them cheques made out by the state for as little as Rs 40 to Rs 200. The detailed survey conducted by CJP now corroborates this pathetic reality.

Moreover, the state government has refused to accept even those estimates of losses contained in panchnamas prepared by its own officers. In the PIL before the Gujarat High Court, CJP has argued that the ceiling of Rs 50,000 is entirely illegal, arbitrary and unconstitutional and the amount should, in consonance with the state’s obligations under Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution, be fixed at Rs 1.5 lakh in rural areas and Rs three lakh in the urban areas. Compensation as per losses indicated in the official panchnamas (subject to the above ceilings) should also be paid.

In August 2002, the WPC report had recorded that as many as 1,32,532 persons had been displaced or forced to leave their houses and were living in 121 riot relief camps of which 58 were in Ahmedabad city.

By June 1, 2002, as mentioned earlier, there had been 4,954 cases (2,023 urban and 2,931 rural) of residential houses having been completely destroyed. There were a further 18,294 cases of partially damaged houses (11,199 urban and 7,095 rural) – i.e. more than 23,000 houses had been destroyed or damaged by the rioters. In addition to this, approximately 5,000 urban houses and approximately 1,000 rural houses were destroyed or damaged after June 2002.

And yet, despite the facts on the ground, the state of Gujarat continues with the false propaganda that adequate compensation has been paid. Unaffected by a genocide that claimed thousands of lives, the state’s attitude has remained unabashedly unrepentant. In July 2002 the Gujarat government announced that the relief camps which sheltered thousands of displaced refugees had been voluntarily closed down by camp organisers. This was yet another example of the state’s manipulation of the truth. Even documents prepared by the state establish that the camps were forcibly closed down following threats and coercion by officers of the state. (In August 2002, the chief minister callously dubbed the relief camps "baby-making factories".) In fact, the camps were forcibly closed down in anticipation of a visit from the Chief Election Commission, in an attempt to establish that ‘normalcy’ had been restored.

Another item on the state’s long list of misdeeds was its refusal to acknowledge official documents detailing losses suffered by victims of the violence. Initial losses were recorded in panchnamas prepared by state officials after site visits or inspections. Although recorded by government officials in the presence of panchas, or witnesses, these panchnamas were later rejected by the state. After the panchnamas had been collected by local police stations at various relief camps in the normal course, the state asked district collectors to appoint teams that conducted their own surveys. Predictably, the losses and damage shown in these survey results were drastically reduced to protect the state’s interests and public image.

More often than not, the state’s so-called technical teams carried out ex parte visits (in the absence of victim survivors) to sundry business establishments. Their reports were never made available for public scrutiny. The compensation amounts paid on the basis of these reports are so niggardly and inadequate as to confer further insult or injury upon those who had already lost their livelihoods and property. Ignoring the earlier panchnamas, during the course of the PIL the Gujarat government also demanded that the victims prove their losses "conclusively" and by adopting "proceedings in civil courts".

Apart from the panchnamas, some first information reports (FIRs) by victim complainants and the police statements recorded therein also contain details of actual losses suffered.

The Gujarat government’s denial of the panchnamas, its response to victims’ losses, only exemplifies its overall approach to a people who had suffered so grievously. It negates, yet again, the Gujarat government’s claims that it had fulfilled its constitutional obligations of compensation. On the contrary, it highlights the government’s continuing reluctance to provide just and fair compensation to those who had already lost so much.

The state’s complicity in influencing records and policy in Gujarat vis-à-vis the genocide, its aftermath, the payment of compensation and reparation, and its obstruction to the path of justice continues even today. Five years later, attitudes have not changed.

By the state’s own admissions to various national bodies, it is evident that the Gujarat government has spent a total of Rs 55 crore for compensation. The balance of funds came from a central government grant of Rs 150 crore, of which the sum of Rs 19.10 crore was returned unused.

Apart from the obvious lacunae in compensation awarded to victims of the genocide, which have been detailed above, the aggregate figures themselves illustrate a glaring discrepancy. While the government estimated that the total loss to property alone was well over Rs 600 crore, the total amount awarded as compensation, including compensation for deaths, rations to relief camps, etc, was in fact only Rs 185.90 crore (including Rs 119 crore spent on providing rations at refugee camps and Rs 17.90 crore awarded as compensation for those killed). The numbers speak for themselves.

There is a pattern of behaviour that establishes that the government of Gujarat intends to deny dignified compensation to the victims of the mass carnage of 2002. What is required is an independent comparison between the discrepancies in the official records, the losses recorded in the FIRs, police statements and panchnamas, and thereafter by the technical survey team. Significantly, the government informed the WPC in August 2002 that almost 5,000 houses had been completely destroyed. In the same breath, the Gujarat government defends the ceiling of Rs 50,000 per home when far greater losses have been suffered.

In effect, the compensation paid is pitiful even where FIRs and panchnamas were dutifully recorded. Whereas ration in the relief camps was given to 1,60,753 persons as per the Gujarat government’s own records, relief money and money for rehabilitation were given to a far reduced number. This is a gross discrepancy that appears to victimise the inmates of relief camps who were and in some cases still are internally displaced persons or refugees. And given their refugee status, it would be reasonable to assume that each one of them should have been entitled to rehabilitation or compensation.

Constitutional obligations require that compensation of at least Rs three lakh plus interest from 2002 be paid to the relatives of those killed and proportional amounts be paid as compensation for disabilities and serious injuries. Women who were raped or sexually abused must be given compensation equal to that awarded for persons who were killed. The ceiling amount for house compensation must be raised to Rs 1.5 lakh in the rural areas and Rs three lakh in the urban areas, and compensation based on a fair assessment of data and records, including the panchnamas contemporaneously recorded, must be paid along with the interest amount accruing from 2002.

Activists have also argued that when communal violence takes place, the state should be duty bound to provide adequate reparation rather than capriciously handing out arbitrary sums of money to victims. Given these recommendations, the government of India is reported to be considering a review of existing policies governing the payment of compensation to victims of communal violence. (India, including Gujarat, has witnessed a series of communal conflicts since independence and rates of compensation awarded to victims of these conflicts have varied greatly.) Furthermore, in light of the paltry amounts given by the Gujarat government to the families of those killed in the violence, the government of India awarded a compensation amount of Rs 3.5 to four lakh to these individuals in November 2006.

Many activists have however highlighted that the compensation needs to encompass those victims who weren’t killed during the violence but nevertheless suffered serious harm and injury – including victims of sexual violence, victims of serious injuries and those who suffered significant damage to their property but were not properly recompensed under the state government’s disbursement.

After visiting Gujarat in October 2006, the NCM has further recommended that this policy – in addition to providing mandatory sums agreed for immediate compensation – should also include money for rehabilitation. The NCM has highlighted that a specific policy dealing with internally displaced persons in the context of communal violence is important, especially in situations where the threat against minorities is perceived to be continuing, where the criminal justice system – as in Gujarat – appears not to be working and there is ongoing discrimination and exclusion. The NCM has argued that the policy must further include provisions for those wishing to return home as well as provisions to facilitate their return and restore the displaced families to their original conditions of living. All these remain in the form of recommendations alone.

Existing camps not regularised by the state government

Ahmedabad (Rehabilitation Camps)
Islamic Relief Committee (IRC) – Houses Rehabilitated, 2002
Allama Ali Takiya – 60 houses
Khanwadi Mitthan Shahid – 156 houses
Ekta Nagar, Vatwa – 108 houses
Naroda Patiya – 125 houses
Ekta Complex, Juhapura – 37 houses
Javed Park, Juhapura – 14 houses
Millat Colony, Gupta Nagar – 317 houses
Mohalatwad, Paldi – 22 houses
Viramgam – 82 houses
Mandal – 4 houses
IRCG Colony, Asim Park – 35 houses
Gujarat Sarvojanik Relief Committee
Sidhikabad, Juhapura – 180 houses
Vandvad, Vatwa – 84 houses
Satnagar, Nr. Ambica Mill, Kakarakia – 240 houses
Parmanand Patel ni Chawl – 79 houses
Arsh Colony, Vatwa – 50 houses
Viramgam – 112 houses
 
Anand district
Ode – 25 houses
Kheda Anand Relief Committee built 34 houses in Anand
 
Dahod district
Sanjeli, Jhalod – 18 houses
Sukhsar, Fatehpura – 39 houses
Piplod, Devgadhbaria – 3 houses

Gandhinagar district
Adalaj – 11 houses
Nardipur – 17 houses
Por – 12 houses
 
Kheda district
Shewala – 14 houses
Gothaj, Kapadvanj – 13 houses
Anjuman-e-Tamir-e-Millat built 20 houses
Majlis Dawatul Haq built 20 houses
 
Mehsana district (Kadi Rehabilitation Camps)
Satnagar (Taluka Vijapur) – 20 houses
Nandasan – 35 houses
Abolgaon – 82 houses & 49 houses
 
Panchmahal District
Shahra – 50 houses
Della – 60 houses
Pandharwada (Khanpur) – 100 houses
Vanjiakhunt (Santrampur) – 5 houses
Eral and Malav (Kalol) – 34 houses
Halol – 53 houses

Sabarkantha district
Vadali – 61 houses
Modasa – 68 houses
Tajpur Camp, Prantij – 21 houses
Chhanapur – 15 houses
Dolapur, Malpur – 22 houses
Himmatnagar – 25 houses

Archived from Communalism Combat, June 2007 Year 13    No.123, Genocide's Aftermath Part I, Compensation

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Extensive evidence recorded by the Tribunal points to the devastating loss of property by the Muslim community in the state. Relying on detailed tabulation of losses computed by community leaders at the village, city and district levels, independent groups estimated the total loss to the Muslim community at not less than Rs. 3,800 crore. (Except where otherwise stated, the figures for losses given below have been computed by business representatives of the community and  social activists). The pre-planning, precision and scale of destruction calls for massive reparation by the Gujarat state.

The Muslim community in Gujarat was one of the most prosperous in the country and its contribution to the economy of the state, pivotal. The fact that the economy of this section of the population has been crippled suggests a sinister motive behind the destruction.

Evidence provided by prominent businessmen belonging to both the Muslim and Hindu communities point to the systematic destruction. The destruction of two establishments on CG Road — Pantaloon Showroom and the Hero Honda Showroom — in a posh area in Ahmedabad, is illuminating. The Pantaloon Showroom is a partnership of Hindus and Muslims, with the Muslim partner owning only a 10 per cent share. The Copper Chimney restaurant, though owned by a Hindu Punjabi, was targeted. Those instigating the attack were obviously well-informed,  for very few people knew that the owner had recently signed a deal with a Sheikh in the Gulf.

Information was gathered from the Registrar of Companies, the Revenue and the Sales Tax departments. Significantly, several months prior to the carnage, the widely circulated local Gujarati daily, Sandesh, had published a list of all Muslim-owned establishments in Ahmedabad with ‘Hindu’ names. Was there some unstated purpose behind the publishing of this list? Was it used as a ready reckoner by those who destroyed these establishments later?
According to Shri Narendra Brahmbutt, president of the Ahmedabad Hotel and Residents Association, the hotel sector alone has suffered a staggering loss of Rs. 260 crore. Suppliers to the hotel industry suffered losses to the extent of Rs. 60 crore. As many as 6,700 workers belonging to the majority community have been rendered jobless due to the burning and arson by the fanatic militia.

Details of losses
Muslims estimate losses due to the prolonged closure of shops, industries and commercial establishments in the state to be no less at Rs. 3,000 crore. (The Gujarat Chambers of Commerce and Industry puts the figure at Rs. 2,000 crore).

Hotel Industry
Approximately 1,150 hotels were burnt or looted on the National Highway from Vapi to Vadodara and on to Palanpur. The total estimated loss to property and investment in looting and damage alone, across the state, is Rs. 760 crore.

• A Rs. 600 crore business loss for the hotel industry in Gujarat.
• At least 20,000 workers in the hotel industry were rendered jobless and many are missing. Ironically, many of those who lost their jobs were non-Muslims, indicative of the long–term impact of destruction and terror on all sections of society, not just the 10 per cent strong Muslim minority that is the immediate target. Nearly 7,000–8,000 Rabari boys were rendered jobless in Gujarat because Muslim hotels were burnt and destroyed, according to the evidence of Tejabhai, a Rabari leader recorded by an expert witness.

    
Transport industry
The transport godowns on the National Highway have suffered damages to the tune of Rs. 12 crore. In addition, losses suffered due to the burning down of over 1,000 trucks are estimated by transport operators belonging to Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara Godhra and Himmatnagar, at Rs. 60 crore. The truck operators’ insurance claims for the cumulative damage amounted to Rs. 830 crore.

• More than Rs. 10 crore lost due to the burning down of 60 Opel Astras parked outside the GM Motors unit at Halol.
• Rs. 4 crore lost due to the torching of the Honda City and Accord fleet of cars at the Landmark Honda showroom at Thaltej, Gandhinagar.
• The Gujarat State Road Transport Corporation estimated a loss of Rs. 12.50 crore and transport companies have lost business amounting to Rs. 70 crore.

Though overt violence has ended, ethnic cleansing continues in the form of the economic decimation of the minority in Gujarat. The Tribunal is particularly disturbed by the fact that it is not just the ordinary worker of the Sangh Parivar, even ministers and other Hindutva leaders are involved in instigating the economic boycott of Muslims from behind the scenes.

Industry (general):

• Halol:17-18 factories destroyed.
• Vatwa: All Muslim-owned factories in GIDC area destroyed.
• Mehsana: All Muslim-owned factories destroyed.
• Dahod–Godhra: Large factories destroyed.
• Naroda Fruit Market: Muslim-owned fruit shops destroyed.
• Kabadi Market, Ahmedabad: Destroyed.
• Bharuch: Muslim-owned shops and showrooms destroyed in Bharuch city.
• Ankleshwar: All Muslim–owned factories in GIDC area destroyed.
• Sabarkantha/Chhotaudaipur/Banaskantha: Muslim–owned shops, hotels and commercial establishments destroyed.
• Factories which had insurance cover have lodged claims worth Rs. 400 crore.
• On National Highway No. 8, about 90 per cent of the commercial establishments, including small shops, godowns and factories, have been completely wiped out.

Agriculture

• Standing crops in Panchmahal, Mehsana, Dahod, Sabrakantha, Banaskantha and Kheda districts were burnt by the miscreants.
• Motors installed in the fields for drawing water were stolen.
• Borewells in the fields, which cost anywhere from Rs. 50,000 to Rs 1.5 lakh, were damaged beyond repair. At least 7,000 such borewells of Muslim agriculturists from all over Gujarat were destroyed.
• Large and small agricultural landholdings of Muslims in Gujarat where economic and social boycott still continues have been taken over by powerful interests dominated by the BJP/RSS/VHP and BD.

Miscellaneous

• More than Rs. 2 crore lost in damage to the Lucky Film Studio.
• Hundreds of crores lost due to the arson of thousands of houses and buildings. At least 75,000 homes were seriously damaged in the destruction, of which 10, 204  were burnt down completely. At least 10,000 shops were targeted, of which over 2,100 were completely ransacked.
• A Handloom Expo was on in Ahmedabad when the Godhra tragedy took place. All the Muslim artisans from Kashmir and West Bengal were attacked and their displays destroyed.
• It is abundantly clear that the economic destruction took place mainly because of inaction on the part of the state government. Hence, the responsibility for rehabilitation need lie squarely with it. But the government has not even assessed the damages, nor laid down any guidelines for payment of compensation. Unfortunately, even the insurance companies, such as the New India Insurance and others, have not even considered the legitimate insurance claims of businessmen in many areas.

While ignoring the genuine and pressing relief and rehabilitation needs of the survivors, the sponsors of the carnage and their cadre have now resorted to a crippling economic boycott against Muslims in many parts of Gujarat. In Gandhi-nagar, Mehsana and Sabarkantha districts, truck and auto drivers are facing a severe economic boycott thanks to the machinations of politicians like Gujarat ministers, Shri Nitin Patel and Shri Narayan Lalludas Patel.

In Vadodara, there have been, at least, over two dozen instances of Muslims being told by their Hindu employers not to come to work. In Por and Paliyad villages in Gandhinagar district, villagers who had returned were facing the severe impact of hunger and loss of livelihood due to the refusal by village Patels (who dominate the panchayat and who are politically associated with the BJP) to buy milk (from milch cattle) or to hire Muslim women as farm labour on the land belonging to the majority community.
Though overt violence has ended, ethnic cleansing continues in the form of the economic decimation of the minority in Gujarat.

The Tribunal is particularly disturbed by the fact that it is not just the ordinary worker of the Sangh Parivar, even ministers and other Hindutva leaders are involved in instigating the economic boycott of Muslims from behind the scenes. Home minister Shri Gordhan Zadaphiya and revenue minister Shri Haren Pandya, ministers Shri Narayan Lalludas Patel, Shri Niteen Patel, forest minister Shri Prabhatsinh Chauhan, minister for cottage industries, Shri Ranjitsinh Chawda, BJP MLAs Sushri Amita Patel and Sushri Maya Kotdani and Dr. Jaideep Patel (Gujarat VHP’s vice–president), among many others, have been named by the eyewitnesses, in this context.        

Archived from Communalism Combat, November-December 2002 Year 9  No. 81-82, Economic Destruction         
                     

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