Veraval may have remained peaceful in the aftermath of Godhra, but violence flared here on Tuesday after a girl was sexually harassed. Mobs went on the rampage, looting as many shops as they could and then setting them on fire and the police also came under fire.
But were there communal overtones to the incident? If one follows the pattern of looting, there’s something that just can’t be overlooked: the fact that the mobs here were ‘‘secular’’ — they didn’t care whether the shops they were targeting belonged to Hindus or Muslims.
Community leaders here, admitting that the incidents had been given a communal colour, said economic problems could be the reason for the violence. Confirming this, police said that in majority of the cases, goods were looted before the shops were set afire. In areas like Vakariya Bazaar, Subhash Road and Patelwadi, the mob targeted commercial establishments of both Hindus and Muslims.
‘‘It is sad that the violence has been given a communal angle, it’s just frustrated people giving vent to their anger,’’ said Jitu Kuhadia, president of Veraval Kharva Community.
Kuhadia added, ‘‘One person was stoned to death near the girls’ school and another was killed in police firing. This time, people were interested in looting, not killing.’’ District Collector Rohit Pathak said, ‘‘While violence subsided in the city area, miscreants looted a godown of Hero Honda motorbikes on the outskirts of the city. The incidents clearly reveals that looting was the intention of the mob.’’
The economy of the town has been on the rocks since 1998, when European countries started rejecting Indian fish consignments. The once-thriving fishing industry, in which Kharvas and Muslims are partners, is no longer a profitable one. That’s why leaders of both the communities share a common view that the root of this violence lies in unemployment and poverty, not communal sentiments.
According to police record, in the 1986 riots, 11 people were killed and the loss due to looting was estimated at Rs 1 crore. In 1996, 11 were injured and a few loot cases were registered, but in 2004, two people were killed and 100 loot cases were reported with losses estimated at Rs 10 crore.
‘‘In the last two years, the fishing season has been bad. Several hundreds have been rendered jobless and these people turned into the mob that looted shops in Veraval,’’ said a leader of Muslim Seva Samaj Mohammed Sorathiya.
Kharva community head Kuhadia said both — the Kharvas and Muslims — shared a symbiotic relation as Kharvas were fishermen, while Muslims were exporters.
Kishan Varidum, president of All-Gujarat Boat Association, said, ‘‘Last season, export of fish plummeted to 280 tons from 700 tons in 1998, when European countries started rejecting Indian consignments due to the bad state of processing factories. Thirty per cent of the total 3,000 boats couldn’t venture into sea in the last season, leaving several hundred jobless. While this season, 50 per cent of the boats won’t set sail as boat owners do not have money for diesel and labour.’’
Varidum added, ‘‘The number of boats has increased from 800 in 1998 to 3,000 this year, but the hike in diesel prices has dealt a blow to this industry. The price has increased by Rs 12 in one year and the State Government has also stopped giving subsidy in advance.’’
‘‘Earlier, we were given 35 per cent subsidy per litre on purchase of diesel. Now, the government has introduced the post-payment system. Payment of subsidy to Veraval boat owners to the tune of Rs 7 crore is due for the past five months,’’ he stated.
Veraval remains peaceful
THOUGH no untoward incident was reported in Veraval on Thursday, the town will remain under curfew till Friday morning. On Thursday, widespread combing operations were conducted in which 66 people were detained and acid bombs, stones and petrol was seized from Patelwadi area. Meanwhile, police arrested 26 people and seized looted goods worth over Rs 1 lakh. Those arrested have been remanded in police custody for two days by a Veraval court.