Godhra remains sore wound in Modi's Gujarat

GODHRA WOES: In Rehmatnagar, a small village bordering Godhra, people hope to progress like the people in other areas of Gujarat.

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Rajdeep Sardesai

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Keywords: Convictions, Justice

Godhra: The burnt train at Godhra station sparked a terrible communal conflict. However, today in 2007, Godhra is still a grieving and a wounded town where justice is denied and divisions between communities are stark.

The very name Godhra is perhaps synonymous with Hindu-Muslim tensions. In 2002 a burnt train in this town led to riots that have been described as a national shame in the history of Indian politics.

But even today, over a hundred young men are still imprisoned under POTA, with no convictions, yet languishing in jail. They are mostly carpenters, painters, auto-drivers and daily wagers who lived here in Rehmatnagar. In this village, desperate wretchedly poor families scratch out a living.

They are the wives and children of those accused of burning S-6 coach of the Sabarmati express at Godhra station. Their wives grieve uncontrollably. Their children have stopped going to school.

“Look at the state we are in today. Why does Modi not come and visit us. He should come and see the condition in which we are living. We cannot raise our kids. Why does he not send us and our children also to jail,” says Khairunissa, wife of accused.

Godhra is Modi's neglected stepchild. The pathetic frail dignity of Bohris walking past the mosque reflects the inter-community squabbles. Every neighborhood is divided by a border. Hindus and Muslims cross each other only rarely supervised by a sleepy policeman.

Mohammad and Latifa Yusuf who run an NGO for Muslim welfare say that Modi simply does not care for them. Latifa Yusuf questions as to why no one was given any compensation for Godhra bomb blasts. “Because we are Godhra muslims?,” adds Latifa.

In this small village bordering Godhra, people hope to progress like the other areas of Gujarat.

But, like the accused who languish forgotten in jail, Godhra, too, is forgotten. The people here still work as vendors and small shopkeepers. Gujarat is still not shining in Godhra.