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Politics of Pre-election Riots in Kishtwar
The communal clashes that broke out in Kishtwar in Jammu and Kashmir on 9 August 2013 on the eve of Eid are going to cast a long shadow on the forthcoming elections as well as on communal relations. As it is, the Islamic nature of the later phase of the Kashmiri movement and the creation of the village defence committees have led to the two communities choosing sides and to the shrinking of common spaces. The division which seemed to be political in the initial phase has now entered the social and cultural spaces.
I am thankful to Arpita Chakraborty and Fayaz A Dar for their critical comments.
Lastly, there is the effect of the remarkable fact that people in general experience their present almost naively, unable to appreciate what it holds; they must first put some distance between it and them – in other words, the present must first have become the past before it will furnish clues for assessing what is to come.1
The communal clashes that broke out in Kishtwar in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) on 9 August 2013 on the eve of Eid claimed three lives and left 80 injured apart from the shops and homes that were burnt or looted. According to a local news reporter the trouble on Friday
…erupted following an altercation between two youth when a religious procession, on its way to Eidgah was passing through Kuleed area of the town. The altercation soon flared up and resulted into stone pelting; following which the youths from the majority community went on a rampage and set shops and vehicles standing at Kuleed Chowk on fire. In retaliation, the youths from the minority community set a few houses and shops of the majority community on fire.2
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