Muslim mob runs amok in Behala, Kolkata

Is this only future?

It’s the time for the reader to go through the following story before anything.

On September 22, 2011 at a place called Janakalyan in Behala Chowrasta, Kolkata, at 10.30 am in the morning a Muslim individual, of age 52 years, on a scooter, was going to drop off his daughter to the school. While he was returning from the school an auto-rickshaw knocked him down and it is alleged that he was in a pool of blood on the road for almost next 2 hrs. As per witnesses, none did help him; police ambulance refused to take him to the hospital and the police did not frame the rickshaw driver.

He was taken to a nearby hospital and was admitted. The Muslim individual succumbed to death in the evening on September 23, 2011and while returning from the burial ground, his in-laws and friends, almost 200, blockaded Behala Chowrasta (crossing of 4 avenues) at 10.30 pm. They also ransacked a few shops along with 12 auto-rickshaws. All these led to clashes between them and Hindu rickshaw drivers.

A large police contingent including RAF went to disperse the violent groups; they were lathi-charged too and situation calmed down by 11.20 pm. However, from around 11.30 pm Hindu rickshaw drivers started blockading the same crossing demanding arrests of Muslims and clashed with police repeatedly.

Police assured Hindus to nab the Muslim felons fast and only then Hindus called the blockade a halt.

However, there has not been any single approach yet, let alone arrest of any Muslim rowdy.

The aforementioned single incident has brought to the fore lots of issues at the same instant. Without doubt, the tragic death of the Muslim individual was most unfortunate and such a public apathy to any fatally injured person is completely unacceptable and must be condemned. But that does not enable Muslims to get amuck, hold the administration to ransom and destruct vehicles, shops of innocent people and thus conduct pillage or plundering to express their rage. Was the ire more for Behala being a Hindu bastion?

Even if the Islamic tirade this time was no match to the one that Kolkata witnessed during the Muslim fundamentalists-led drive for expulsion of Taslima Nasrin on November 21, 2007 and surely any alleged secularist would love to say that protests of 200 people at best is minimal, Behala incident proved that this would be the future of Kolkata before long, if unchecked. And the greatest casualty would be the Bengal administration, yet to ascertain extent of Hindu virility fully.

Has the administration forgotten that any action begets same form of reaction?

What has come to the fore owing to brief yet violent clashes between Hindus and Muslims is that Hindu strength does exist still and among Bengali Hindus, considered by many as too non-martial.

It’ll also be judicious for Bengal administration to note that Hindu notion of struggle is not similar to that of Haqqani network. While it remains unvoiced at times, a genuine flare up may occur within fractions of a second. And the sole reason behind this is that a Hindu considers – it is humane to forget and forgive, it is divine to resist and repay – as being propounded by Hindu Dharma from time immemorial.

Civil war, after all, is neither desirable nor amiable.