Volume 2 An inquiry into the carnage in Gujarat -- Findings And Recommendations by Concerned Citizens Tribunal -Gujarat 2002
1.1 One of the most telling testimonies presented before the Tribunal was that ofan expert witness on the recorded words of a police officer on Star News on March 9.“Wahan factory mein aag lagi hai, GIDC mein… haan…aag lagi hai… factory Hindu-Muslimmix thi, is mein ek partner Muslim tha, baki ke sab partner Hindu the.” (“In GIDC a factoryis on fire… yes… it is on fire… the factory was jointly owned… one partner was aMuslim and the rest were Hindus.”)
1.2 Extensive evidence recorded by the Tribunal points to the devastating loss ofproperty by the Muslim community in the state. Relying on detailed tabulation oflosses computed by community leaders at the village, city and district levels, indepen-dent groups estimated the total loss to the Muslim community at not less than Rs.3,800 crore. Except where otherwise stated, the figures for losses given below havebeen computed by business representatives of the community and social activists.(See Detailed Annexures, Volume 1II). The pre-planning, precision and scale of destruc-tion calls for massive reparation by the Gujarat state.
1.3 The Muslim community in Gujarat was one of the most prosperous in the coun-try and its contribution to the economy of the state, pivotal. The fact that the economyof this section of the population has been crippled suggests a sinister motive behindthe destruction. In most of the cases, chemicals were used, apparently to generatevery high temperatures and ensure complete destruction.
1.4. In Ahmedabad, the selective destruction has been well documented. The listbelow, of some prominent targets, illustrates the point:
Evidence provided by prominent businessmen belonging to both the Muslim andHindu communities, point to this systematic destruction. The destruction of two estab-lishments on CG Road — Pantaloon Showroom and the Hero Honda Showroom — ina posh area in Ahmedabad, is illuminating. The Pantaloon Showroom is a partnership ofHindus and Muslims, with the Muslim partner owning only a 10 per cent share. TheCopper Chimney restaurant, though owned by a Hindu Punjabi, was targeted. Thoseinstigating the attack were obviously well-informed, for very few people knew that theowner had recently signed a deal with a Sheikh in the Gulf. Information was gatheredfrom the Registrar of Companies, the Revenue and the Sales Tax departments. Signifi-cantly, several months prior to the carnage, the widely circulated local Gujarati daily,Sandesh, had published a list of all Muslim-owned establishments in Ahmedabad with‘Hindu’ names. Was there some unstated purpose behind the publishing of this list? Wasit used as a ready reckoner by those who destroyed these establishments later?
1.5. Similarly, shops and establishments owned by Muslims were destroyed in Rajkot,Vadodara, Surat, Bhavnagar, Junagadh, Palanpur, Nadiad, Himmatnagar, Mehsana,Visnagar and Unjha. Vehicles at the General Motors showroom in Halol (60 km fromGodhra) were also not spared. Several processing houses and small factories located in theindustrial areas of Narol/Vatwa and Naroda on the outskirts of Ahmedabad city, sufferedheavy losses on the day of the Gujarat bandh, as the finished goods lying in the godownswere set on fire. (An FIR filed in this connection has named BJP MLA Sushri Maya Kotdaniand VHP vice-president of Gujarat unit, Dr. Jaideep Patel as among those responsible).
1.6. Industries located in the GIDC estates at Godhra, Kalol near Ahmedabad,Halol in Panchmahal and in the adjoining Vadodara district bore the brunt of thisdestruction. Textile units in Ankleshwar and other industrial units in Bharuch dis-trict, too, suffered huge losses. According to Shri Narendra Brahmbutt, president ofthe Ahmedabad Hotel and Residents Association, the hotel sector alone has suffereda staggering loss of Rs. 260 crore. Suppliers to the hotel industry suffered losses to theextent of Rs. 60 crore. As many as 6,700 workers belonging to the majority commu-nity have been rendered jobless due to the burning and arson by the fanatic militia.
1.7. Details of losses suffered:Muslims estimate losses due to the prolonged closure of shops, industries and com-mercial establishments in the state to be no less at Rs. 3,000 crore. (The GujaratChambers of Commerce and Industry puts the figure at Rs. 2,000 crore).
1.8. Hotel IndustryApproximately 1,150 hotels were burnt or looted on the National Highway fromVapi to Vadodara and on to Palanpur. The total estimated loss to property and invest-ment in looting and damage alone, across the state, is Rs. 760 crore.
1.9. Transport industryThe transport godowns on the National Highway have suffered damages to thetune of Rs. 12 crore. In addition, losses suffered due to the burning down of over1,000 trucks are estimated by transport operators belonging to Ahmedabad, Surat,Vadodara Godhra and Himmatnagar, at Rs. 60 crore.
1.10. Industry
1.11. Agriculture
1.12. Miscellaneous
1.13. It is abundantly clear that the economic destruction took place mainly because of inaction on thepart of the state government. Hence, the responsibility for rehabilitation need lie squarely with it. But thegovernment has not even assessed thedamages, nor laid down any guidelines for payment of compensation. Unfortunately, even the insurancecompanies, such as the New India Insurance and others, have not even considered the legitimate insuranceclaims of businessmen in many areas. The evidence recorded of a prosperous businessman from Gulberg society,who owned five shops and whose insurance claims were Rs. 9 lakh, but who was paid only Rs. 3lakh, is a case in point.
1.14. While ignoring the genuine and pressing relief and rehabilitation needs of thesurvivors, the sponsors of the carnage and their cadre have now resorted to a crip-pling economic boycott against Muslims in many parts of Gujarat. In Gandhinagar,Mehsana and Sabarkantha districts, truck and auto drivers are facing a severe eco-nomic boycott thanks to the machinations of politicians like Gujarat ministers, ShriNitin Patel and Shri Narayan Laloo Patel. In Vadodara, there have been, at least, overtwo dozen instances of Muslims being told by their Hindu employers not to come towork. In Por and Paliyad villages in Gandhinagar district, villagers who had returnedwere facing the severe impact of hunger and loss of livelihood due to the refusal byvillage Patels (who dominate the panchayat and who are politically associated with theBJP) to buy milk (from milch cattle) or to hire Muslim women as farm labour on theland belonging to the majority community.Though overt violence has ended, ethnic cleansing continues in the form of theeconomic decimation of the minority in Gujarat.
1.15. The Tribunal is particularly disturbed by the fact that it is not just the ordinaryworker of the Sangh Parivar, even ministers and other Hindutva leaders are involved ininstigating the economic boycott of Muslims from behind the scenes. Home ministerShri Gordhan Zadaphiya and revenue minister Shri Haren Pandya, ministers Shri NarayanLaloo Patel, Shri Niteen Patel, forest minister Shri Prabhatsinh Chauhan, minister ofstate for cottage industries, Shri Ranjitsinh Chawda, BJP MLAs Sushri Amita Patel andSushri Maya Kotdani and Dr. Jaideep Patel (Gujarat VHP’s vice-president), among manyothers, have been named by the eyewitnesses, in this context.