Riots trigger power struggle in western UP | Latest News India - Hindustan Times
close_game
close_game

Riots trigger power struggle in western UP

Hindustan Times | BySunita Aron and Vashishth Bhardwaj, Muzaffarnagar
Aug 28, 2014 09:50 AM IST

Large-scale migration of Hindus and Muslims to safer zones in western Uttar Pradesh has led to a change in demographics, which may affect politics in the region.

Safety in riot-scarred West UP is in numbers. So is an alleged design to control land and power by tilting the demographic scales.

Symbolic of this new power struggle is Pallra, a village in Shahpur area of Muzaffarnagar whose population pattern has changed following large-scale migration of Hindus and Muslims to safer zones.

Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now.

Pallra means weighing scales in Hindi.

“Some 1,000 Muslim families from (riot-hit) Bassikala 2 km away were settled in our village where the Hindu-Muslim ratio was 60:40 and not adjoining Pallri where the ratio is 40:60. The numerical change means the next chairman of Shahpur Nagar panchayat will be a Muslim,” says Rajiv Pratap Saini, a resident of Pallra.

Ditto, he adds, was the case of Balra village on Hardwar Road after Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind constructed houses for Muslim riot victims there. Saini’s association with BJP explains his claim. But Hindus in general sniff an agenda behind Muslim organisations and influential individuals ‘making’ Muslim migrants move to areas where they can impact the voters’ ratio and become a potent political force.

Consequently, the Hindu sentiment has buried caste clashes. Three dominant communities — Dalits, Sikhs and Jats — view Muslims as the common enemy following clashes in Kanth (Moradabad), Saharanpur and Muzaffarnagar in recent times.

The growing mistrust between Hindus and Muslims is pervasive. A Hindu migrant who moved from Muslim-dominated Mehmoodnagar, says: “There was a time when we celebrated festivals together. But things changed after our homes were attacked last year. I sold my house for a song and moved out after living there for 26 years. Two ‘Hindu lanes’ sandwiched between Muslim settlements in that village have virtually disappeared.”

Likewise, Muslims have been leaving Kakra village 20 km away. The mosque here is abandoned and Gayoor, the last of the Muslim inhabitants, is preparing to leave. “My Hindu neighbours are dissuading me but my family no longer feels safe here,” he says.

Those helping Muslims rehabilitate say the ‘demographic change’ theory is propaganda to undermine humanitarian efforts. “We have heard tales about the imbalance in Hindu-Muslim ratio caused by settling riot victims in areas such as Haampur where a Muslim has always been elected gram pradhan. These cannot be proved,” says Maulana Arshad Madni, a prominent cleric and leader of the Jamiat-Ulama-i-Hind.

Political scientists, however, sense the tussle for political power that intensified after none of the Muslim candidates won the 2014 Lok Sabha polls in UP. The scenario, they say, could change in places like Deoband where riot-affected Muslims are shifting to. Only once did a Muslim candidate win an assembly election there. “Migration of Muslims from urban areas began after the 1987 riots. (Peasant leader) Mahendra Singh Tikait tried to regain the confidence of Muslims but Arya Samaj threw a spanner while the Sangh Pariwar’s temple movement put up a barrier,” says Allahabad-based professor A Satyanarayana. According to him, prosperity of beef-exporting Muslims is at the root of West UP’s problem. They began purchasing land and participating in politics, unsettling Hindus.

The riots made many lose their lands. And gain fear, perhaps forever.

Unveiling Elections 2024: The Big Picture', a fresh segment in HT's talk show 'The Interview with Kumkum Chadha', where leaders across the political spectrum discuss the upcoming general elections. Watch now!

Get Current Updates on India News, Election 2024, Arvind Kejriwal News Live, Bihar Board 10th Result 2024 Live along with Latest News and Top Headlines from India and around the world.
SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Share this article
SHARE
Story Saved
Live Score
OPEN APP
Saved Articles
Following
My Reads
Sign out
New Delhi 0C
Thursday, March 28, 2024
Start 14 Days Free Trial Subscribe Now
Follow Us On