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The Rediff Special/A Ganesh Nadar'The Al-Umma has finally united the Hindus'During Jayalalitha's regime the Kottaimadu area was surrounded by police checkposts. During the last election, it is alleged, the DMK contestants made a deal with the Al-Umma. Dhandapani, (who was elected MLA), and Ramanathan (who was elected MP) promised to remove the checkposts. Even before the votes were counted, the checkposts were pulled down by mobs. Two policemen were stabbed, but fortunately they did not die. Coimbatore's police commissioner then was Ganesan. In an earlier interview with this correspondent, Al-Umma secretary Ansari had alleged that "Ganesan was anti-Muslim." The saffron brigade counters this, saying ''Ganesan was a sincere officer. He used to say 'I do not want Basha Bhai (the Al-Umma leader) or Arjun Sampath. I am interested in law and order. Whoever disturbs it will be firmly dealt with.' " During the 19-month DMK regime, it is clear that Islamic fundamentalists have grown in strength in Coimbatore. Two days after constable Selvaraj died, Karunanidhi announced, 'The police should not harass two-wheeler owners just for the sake of statistics'. A week after the Coimbatore violence began, on December 6, bombs exploded on three trains that originated at Madras. A controversy in Coimbatore rages on about whether the police joined in the rioting. The police claim they were on strike. Says a constable, ''When our man was stabbed, nobody interfered. How could I interfere when a mob is setting a shop on fire? They would have probably thrown me into the fire.'' The air is thick with the unlikely rumour that the state government may transfer the entire police force in Coimbatore out of the city to appease the Muslims. The policemen say they are not bothered about being transferred. They seem happy to put as much distance as possible between themselves and Coimbatore. ''Transferring us will not solve the problem, every cop in Tamil Nadu knows our hands were shackled, they will do exactly what we did. Nothing will change,'' says one policeman Did the police riot or not? Who attacked the DMK MLA? Local journalists not only have the answers, they are also said to have incriminating photographs. None of the photographs have, however, been published. Why? Confides a journalist, "In Coimbatore there are people on both sides to indulge in violence. Likewise, both sides have trained volunteers to go to jail. The police always presents the wrong accused in every case of rioting. This time we are waiting for the government to produce the wrong people, then we will publish the pictures.'' Remarks another journalist, "The Al-Umma has finally done what nobody else could have ever done. It has united the Hindus into one cohesive unit. The Hindus were fighting among themselves. With this the Al-Umma has brought all the castes together." Kumaran, the city's new police commissioner, told Rediff On The NeT, "We have put up pickets in sensitive areas, we are identifying the culprits on both sides and arresting them. Anybody putting up posters is being dealt with severely." Outside the commissioner's office sat three women. Selvaraj's widow sat at the centre. She carried a ten-month-old baby girl in her arms. She could not answer any questions and sobbed silently. The baby began to cry. She gave me the baby. I walked around with Lavanya in my arms. I wiped the child's tears. What crime had this infant committed to lose a father so young? Selvraj's widow has studied only up to the 8th standard. The commissioner advised her to write the 10th standard examination. He promised her a job. Constable Selvaraj was attached to the B-1 police station. A CRPF posse stood outside the police station. They looked tough and dependable. In contrast to the local police which looked clearly demoralised. Inside, an assistant commissioner of police and a deputy superintendent of police were in animated discussion with the station inspector. A map on the wall indicated the station's precincts. Three colours were used to indicate three kinds of areas. One colour indicated 'Explosive area.' The second colour indicated 'Less explosive area.' The third colour indicated 'Safe area'. The 'safe area' occupied the least space on the map. Members of the saffron brigade allege that "The police cannot enter Kottaimadu. Two days back, even Indian National League leader Abdul Lateef was denied entry by the Al-Umma." Four months ago, Al-Umma secretary Ansari told me, "Earlier there were fights between us and the Sangh Parivar. Now, there are none because we regularly meet at peace committees and discuss our problems.'' Shiv Shankar, a member of the Hindu Makkal Party, refutes this impression. "Peace committee meetings are meant to have tea and biscuits, and nothing else." On Thursday, the HMP staged a dharna outside the collectorate to ask for Sampath and Anandan's release. In February, at its state conference in Mettupalayam, the party plans to commence a 'Kottaimadu Chalo' campaign throughout Tamil Nadu. Complains an RSS activist: "They are interviewing Basha Bhai, the president of Al-Umma, on Sun TV and Vijai TV. Nobody wants to interview us.'' Basha Bhai, who was once arrested under TADA, now moves around with armed bodyguards. Youth moving around on two-wheelers in Coimbatore, residents allege, just have to say the magic word Al-Umma and people move away. Bus transport owners grumble that revenue has fallen in the last fortnight. Autorickshaws drivers fear that "riots can break out at any moment.'' The saffron brigade expects trouble after the CRPF and SAP move out of the city. Palani Baba, a Muslim leader, was murdered on January 28 in Coimbatore, so many residents expect trouble on January 28, 1998. Coimbatore, the textile city called the Manchester of the south, is moving towards trouble with a capital 'T', if harsh preventive measures are not taken against fundamentalists on both sides. A Muslim autorickshaw driver captures the mood of Coimbatore thus: ''The leaders give television interviews, we will be killed on the streets.'' |
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