Anatomy of a rare communal flare-up in Odisha: a bike rally, slogans outside a mosque

Ever since violence broke out in front of the masjid on April 12, residents of Motijharan and other violence-hit areas of Sambalpur have been waiting for relationships to mend and for the city to get back to normal.

The April 12 clash was followed by arson and violence on April 14 – when another procession was taken through the same route – leading to the city being under curfew for the past nine days. Barricades have sprung up and 1,500 police personnel have been deployed across Sambalpur, a city where communal flare-ups are rare – the last one was over 31 years ago. Police have also set up camps in front of every temple and masjid in the city.

Area outside Sunni Noori Masjid. (Express photo/Sujit Bisoyi)

1,000 bikes, slogans

The rally of April 12 — in which an estimated 1,000 bikes, most with two riders each, wound their way through the city’s congested lanes — was meant to “to gear up workers and to keep them charged” for the bigger procession on April 14, according to the Hanuman Jayanti Samanyoyo Samiti, an umbrella grouping of members of the Bajrang Dal, VHP and other Hindu groups which has been organising these rallies every year since 1997.

On April 12, the rally covered a 3-km stretch, starting from Govindtola at 5 pm before proceeding towards Golbazar through Bhutapada, Motijharan, Sunapali and Dhankauda, all localities with a significant minority population.

According to a senior police officer who sustained injuries in the clash that day, when the rally reached Motijharan chowk at 6 pm, some of the participants stayed back and shouted slogans of Jai Sri Ram and Bharat Mata ki Jai while most others proceeded towards Sunapali. It’s then that trouble began.

The FIR lodged by the police at Dhanupalli police station on the April 12 violence reads, “Around 200 members of the other community reached the spot and started abusing the rally members. The mob started pelting stones and was also armed with swords and lathis.”

Police deployed outside the Hanuman Temple at Brooks Hill in Sambalpur. (Express photo/Sujit Bisoyi)

Police said over 30 people, including some of their personnel, were injured in the clashes.

Two days later, on April 14, the Samanyoyo Samiti took out its main rally. This one was much bigger, with police sources saying around 10,000 men, women and children took out a procession, which stuck to the same route that witnessed violence a couple of days earlier. Besides religious chants, the participants performed traditional martial arts and performed a maha aarti.

While the procession went off without any incident, there were reports of stone pelting from across the city. Things got out of hand when rumours spread that a youth, Chintamani Mirdha, 30, had been killed while he was returning from the procession that evening. While police said the death was the result of an “individual brawl” not related to the communal tension, rumours triggered fresh arson, with alleged Hindu groups targeting shops and establishments owned by minorities in at least eight to nine places across the western Odisha town.

Police have so far arrested 98 persons from both sides for their alleged involvement in the April 12 clash and the April 14 arson.

Questions over police strength

While the administration clamped Section 144 of the CrPC following the April 12 violence, questions are being asked of the police’s role in handling the situation.

The Indian Express has learnt that intelligence inputs were sent to the administration warning of possible communal trouble during the rally.

Sambalpur streets wear deserted look in view of curfew. (Express photo/Sujit Bisoyi)

Despite the fact that the rally was being taken through communally sensitive areas – there has been tension in previous years too during Hanuman Jayanti processions, though matters never got out of hand – only 13 police personnel, a sub-inspector and an inspector were deputed at the Motijharan area on April 12.

A senior police officer, however, said the deployment was “as per the arrangement made in the previous years”.

Sambalpur SP B Gangadhar did not respond to repeated calls.

Following the April 12 violence, the SP had said that “sudden provocation” may have triggered the clash, but he later called the violence “a pre-planned incident”.

While the administration clamped Section 144 of the CrPC following the April 12 violence, questions are being asked of the police’s role in handling the situation. (Express photo/Sujit Bisoyi)

Rajkumar Badapanda, president of the Samanyoyo Samiti, called the April 12 bike rally “peaceful” and that they had the permission from the police as well. “Some anti-social elements attacked our members in an organised manner. We were not prepared for any kind of retaliation,” said Badapanda.

On approval being granted for the April 14 procession, district collector Ananya Das had told The Indian Express, “We had made adequate security arrangements for the smooth conduct of the procession. Around 1,500 police personnel were deployed in Sambalpur on April 14 while drones, CCTVs and videography were also done to keep an eye on disturbing elements.”

‘What was my fault?’

Md Safique, 48, whose family has been living in Sambalpur for generations, is a broken man. The restaurant he opened barely 15 months ago was ransacked in the April 14 arson. “I had taken a loan of Rs 45 lakh to open the restaurant. I am helpless now. How will I repay the loan? At least 30 people work here, most of them Hindus. What was their fault? What is my fault? That my name was written outside?” asks Safique, who also owns a gym equipment store that was spared.

Stating that miscreants from both sides were responsible for the violence, Safique said police need to “get to the bottom” of the clashes.

The last time Sambalpur witnessed a curfew for this long was in June 1992, in the charged months leading up to the Babri Masjid demolition.

Following the death of a youth from the minority community, a mob had ransacked the Dhanupali police station after which another group had set a firecracker unit on fire, leading to violence and curfew being imposed in the city for five days.

Md Safique’s restaurant ransacked by miscreants. (Express photo/Sujit Bisoyi)

Hindus make up 89% of the population of Sambalpur city, with the Muslim population at 9% and Christians at 2%.

Though there has been no major communal flare-up in the city since 1992, sources said the Hanuman Jayanti procession, which was earlier confined to a few localities, has grown in scale since then. A senior police officer said the processions are usually a “show of strength” with participants showcasing traditional martial arts.

On Friday, several citizen forums and trade associations in Sambalpur took out a peace march in the city which saw the participation of the district SP.

As curfew continues to remain in force in Sambalpur with slight relaxation, the district administration requested the Muslim community not to congregate at the Eidgah on Eid. The administration, however, allowed people to offer prayers at mosques.