GODHRA: Time seems to have had no effect on the wounds that the Sabarmati Express carnage inflicted more than one-and-a-half years ago on Godhra.

 

Friday evening's communal violence has only opened existing scars, to the point where even a minor incident can shatter the deceptive sense of calm.

 

A by now all-too-familiar sequence of instigation sent tempers rising and a string of violent incidents followed in the town during the Ganesh idol immersion ceremony.

 

As the procession began winding its way through the Rani Masjid area at Kolak Bazaar, some people allegedly started writing ‘Jai Shri Ram' and ‘Ram Lala' on the walls of the masjid.

 

A resident tried to stop them but ended up sparking an argument and the subsequent violence.

 

The residents later erased the graffiti but on Saturday morning a faint ‘Jai Shri Ram' could still be made out. Locals said they erased the writing as soon as they could to avoid more tension.

 

However, several shops remained closed in areas that were not under curfew on Saturday.

 

"In the past few months, people had started commuting through areas dominated by the other community. Now, it is back to the old days when people only moved in their own areas," said YA Gora, a cable operator.

 

He said things seemed normal till the 51st Ganesh idol arrived. "Then, people suddenly became aggressive with heavy rioting near Rani Masjid," he said.

 

Jabir Ganglu, staying near the masjid, said, "The rift will only increase now. This town seems to have been cursed." Raju Darji, a BJP councillor adds, "The bitterness of the Sabarmati carnage still lingers here. The riots are a fallout of this bitterness."

 

Caught in the eye of this storm is BJP MLA Haresh Bhatt, who is surprisingly being criticised by both communities.

 

Bhatt's presence with armed guards during the procession and the derogatory slogans that many of his supporters raised was the main instigation, say Muslims.

 

On the other hand, members of the Hindu community are not happy either.

 

"He could not restrain the police when it took action against those in the procession. This is against whatever he said during electioneering," said a resident of Sonivad.

 

Five people were injured in Friday's violence, most of them in police action.

 

Bhatt, on his part, blames the police, especially district superintendent of police MD Antani for the violence.

 

"The excessive and one-sided use of force by the police led to the situation. The DSP should have restrained himself. It seems the department was overconfident," he said. He added that his supporters were only temporarily angry with him.

 

"They are bound to say this after the police action against them. They feel that this should not have happened with our government in power," Bhatt said.

 

Antani avoided commenting on the allegations but said, "The shops of a particular community were targeted. Anyway, our work is being watched and assessed by several people. We managed to prevent the situation from getting out of control."