Kishtwar fights mistrust,fear eight days after riots

Finally,the government has mustered the courage to send its ministers to talk to us. Lets see what they have to offer, says Ishfaq Hussain,a local,who works in a private school and whose brother was among those injured in the rioting.

The Sunday Express team entered the heavily cordoned and curfewed town on Saturday. What was on view is a town that resembles a battlefield,with burnt shops and vehicles telling a story of the free-for-all that happened on August 9.

You have come very late. You should have seen when the rioting was happening. There was no law enforcement agency to check the anti-social elements who were running amok, says Narinder Manhas,a local.

In most cases,it is clear that nobody has begun calculating who lost how much. Strict curfew since Eid has ensured that traders,whose shops were burnt or looted,have still not been able to visit their shops to check their losses.

Such is the level of distrust and anxiety about what the future holds for them that residents are wary of even being seen talking to outsiders.

Anger against the authorities for refusing to control the rioting mobs still persists. I personally asked a DSP,posted 100 metres from my shop to do something. But he said he and his officers couldnt leave their spot. Half an hour later,my shop was burnt down, says a shopkeeper in the Amar Market,one of the worst-affected areas.

In Om Mehta Lane,young boys playing cricket in the deserted lane,stop their game to give directions to our driver. So you are from the media. When will curfew be lifted completely? one of them asks.

But when asked if there wont be any more violence once curfew is lifted and they dont seem very sure. Who knows? People are still very angry. Meetings are on, one of them says. We are told leaders of the communities are meeting to decide next course of action.

Both sides have many questions though. Who got the petrol that was used to set shops on fire? Who ensured that police didnt react to control the rioters? Who will benefit from the riots?

A police officer says,There are too many rumours and unfortunately Kishtwar residents believe every rumour that comes their way. And,tempers are always running high. It is always as if the town is awaiting the next round of rioting.