Godhra

Godhra

It is amazing that Godhra should be suspected to be a plot by Hindutva forces. Can anyone imagine that the arsonists would target their own people in such large numbers? Or is the charge that they meant only minimal damage - enough to trigger of systematic protests to build up a convenient political climate? That they did not bargain for the incineration of a whole coach and, faced with a fait accompli, they engineered a pogrom? Lalu’s probe, sure enough, would come up with such a finding. Therefore we ought to wait for the Nanavati report, likely to be more unbiased.

20.10.05

A writer to the editor writes, “In a railway coach made of steel, a fire can start only from inside, as the inflammable material has to be inside. But whether the fire started because of something that happened inside the compartment or outside, is of course a different matter altogether.” This thought ought to be seized if there is an attempt to confuse with inside/outside play of words - with all 'inside' pointing to homegrown culprits and 'outside' indicating Mullahs.