TARIQ FAROOQUI | Caravan Daily
[dropcap]M[/dropcap]oradabad in western UP has a special place in my memories. I came to this city as a teenager in April 1980, stayed in Muslim Musafir Khana (Guest house), to appear for a Joint Entrance Engineering Exams at Hindu College and succeeded in getting a place in Electrical Engineering in REC/NIT Calicut, Kerala, 3,000 km away in South India.
In spite of some fond memories of Moradabad, I also have some very painful memories of the city, the memories of riots of 1980.
In August 1980, I was staying at my sister’s home in police campus in Delhi. Her husband, now a retired Inspector General of Police, was then serving as Assistant Commandant (Superintendent Police) in central police forces.
I had gone to her to say ‘good bye’, as I had already received admission letter from NIT Calicut, Kerala, for admission in Electrical Engineering. I had been planning to leave for Calicut in two weeks’ time. I was not sure when I would visit her next time as my brother in law had a transferable job and could be deputed anytime anywhere in India.
On August the 13th,1980, it was the Eid day. We were relaxing and enjoying with my brother-in-law’s friends in late evening when his Subedar Major came on a motor cycle and handed him a written message on a white brownish paper from his commanding officer ordering him to prepare his units and immediately leave for Moradabad with all equipment and tents.
He asked Subedar Major to wait for a while, went in, put on his uniform, and left with him for the barracks to command his troops to leave for Moradabad.
He briefed us on what had happened in Moradabad and asked me and my elder sister to prepare to leave with him. No point staying back in Delhi.
Within two to three hours, around 500 troops and officers were ready to leave with their belongings loaded on green police trucks and jeeps.
I too boarded the jeep with him, along with my sister and with their one and half year-old son.
By 11-12 PM we left Delhi and around 3-4 AM, reinforcement reached Moradabad and started pitching the tents on Exhibition ground.
The sky was lit with regular firing from the country made guns and repeated deafening explosions of crude bombs. It was terrible.
Some troops of the contingent immediately took position on strategic locations with the active guidance of civil police and by 9.00 AM all troops were deployed.
Noise of country made guns being fired by the rioters and the chants of slogans of Har Har Mahadev and Allahu Akbar filled the air. Police was responding by opening fires but only at the Muslims.
Muslims were enraged at the planned provocation by letting the pigs pass through the rows of congregators offering Eid prayers and at the indiscriminate and unprovoked firing at them by the police.
Arrival of central forces had little impact, though they were neutral, and were trying to control riots in a just and unbiased manner. They had little intelligence and were helpless without the cooperation of local police.
The whole night, even during the curfew, rioting and pitched battle between riotous Muslims, Hindus and police continued.
Next day was the 15th August and PM Mrs Gandhi addressed the nation and mentioned bloodbath in Moradabad in her opening sentence.
By the end of day police managed to gain some control over the situation but sporadic violence continued. Hundreds of Muslims, accused of rioting, were picked up, herded in buses by the notorious Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) and were brought to PAC campus, right in front of central forces camp and were beaten mercilessly.
Beating started right when the detainees were alighting from the buses and lathis landed on their heads, shoulders, legs, abdomen and chest. Most of them, just after walking few meters from the buses, were drenched in blood due to lathi blows.
I saw the white beard of an old Muslim man reddened with blood oozing out his head and facial injuries. But PAC men were still not satisfied. One of them pulled his blood drenched beard with full force. Unable to bear the pain the old man lost consciousness and possibly died later.
I saw the white beard of an old Muslim man reddened with blood oozing out his head and facial injuries. But PAC men were still not satisfied. One of them pulled his blood drenched beard with full force. Unable to bear the pain the old man lost consciousness and possibly died later.
Standing and watching all this few meters away from across barbed fence separating the PAC and central forces camps, I was terrified. This incident left lifelong impact on my tender teenage brain and consciousness.
It was revealed later by the people of Moradabad, that rioting was planned by Congress of Mrs Gandhi as she had decided to build Hindu vote bank after her January 1980 electoral win. For her Muslims, who ditched Congress in 1977 were no longer trustworthy. Like Narendra Modi during the Gujarat massacre 2002, she too tried to cut Muslims to size and “teach them a lesson”.
Pigs which appeared between the queues of Eid worshipers in Eidgah, which triggered first argument and later violence between police and Muslims, were possibly brought there with the connivance and approval of Congress party. Police fired on worshipers indiscriminately killing hundreds on spot. Scores died in stampede that followed as over 50000 were attending Eid prayers.
On 20th August I left Moradabad in a police van to return to my native town and prepare to travel to Calicut a week later to start new life, with new friends, in a totally new environment, and with great hope for a bright future.
Riots continued till the year end and unofficially consumed over 2500 lives. However officially only around 400 were listed as dead. It is comparable to famous Jalianwala Bagh massacre of 1919.
Economic impact of over 4-5 months of rioting was ever lasting. World famous brass ware manufacturers from Moradabad could not supply the orders in that period and lost their edge and market share to other manufacturers of the world. Riots ruined the thriving economy of Muslims.
Our politicians, even when projecting themselves as flag bearer of secularism and justice can adopt a rabid communal doctrine and create a terrible situation if politically expedient.
Moradabad’s Muslims Massacre and Riots of 1980 have painful memories not only for sufferers and witnesses but for entire Muslim community of India.
Thirty-six years on, those troubling scenes and painful memories still give me nightmares. Except my family members never before have I shared these traumatic memories with anyone. But as the 36th anniversary of one of the most tragic incidents in Indian Muslim history and the most depressing experience of my life arrives I was forced to unburden myself and tell everyone what I had seen with my own eyes. May sense prevail in our country and never again do we have to witness Moradaabad, Gujarat and Muzaffarnagar.
Tariq Farooqui comes from western Uttar Pradesh in India and has been working in Riyadh for the past 25 years in a senior management position. An alumnus of NIT Calicut, he is a regular contributor on social media. He can be contacted on [email protected]
