MillenniumPost
Delhi

Tale of two colonies — a prologue to communal riots

New Delhi: A largely Muslim-dominated neighbourhood with pockets of Hindu families in some areas — Kardampuri, tucked in the congested lanes of Maujpur-Babarpur has always been a peaceful area. Residents who have lived there for decades said that their colony had never seen Hindu-Muslim violence. "During the Congress regime, there was a time when violence was seen but all of it was focused against the establishment. People are out for our blood this time," Rahman (67) said on Tuesday with anxious eyes as people around him ran amock trying to arrange supplies for injured.

On Tuesday, multiple eye-witnesses to the riots said that at least 13-15 people from their colony were injured and killed either due to stone-pelting or due to gunshot wounds from CAA supporters but the sentiment in the entire colony was to somehow come together with a single intention - to defend their homes, wives, children and families. Abdul (35), who had been stationed near the entrance to Vijay Park and Yamuna Vihar said that they had no option but to defend themselves with whatever they could find.

And so, as preparations were on in Kardampuri, Kabir Nagar and other adjoining colonies for the communal riots if it ever got inside the neighbourhood, CAA supporters were consolidating their weapons and people near the Maujpur Chowk and Gokalpuri.

Preparing for a long night

The residents of Kardampuri had been leading a Shaheen Bagh-like sit-in protest on one of the bridges leading towards their neighbourhood for nearly two months. After CAA supporters purportedly burned the protest site and the rioting began, the residents of Kardampuri and Kabir Nagar started gathering whatever weaponry they could find to defend themselves.

On Tuesday morning, as one entered through the main bridge into Kardampuri, every corner was crowded with four-to-five men preparing a crate of liquor bottles — they were stuffing the bottle openings with handkerchiefs to make makeshift alcohol bombs.

On the other hand, people kept running back and forth with swords and meat cleavers in their hands, desperately shouting out instructions on where help is needed and what help is needed.

Unfortunately, all the residents of the colony had to offer was suspicious eyes, anxious faces and absolute dread for any outsider — anyone they did not know.

As Zulfikar (27), shielded this reporter from a barrage of stones and guns being fired and guided him towards the colony, he mounted his helmet on me and said, "Tell people your name is Rehan if they ask," he said before whisking me away into the lanes of Kardampuri. Meanwhile, some Muslim residents dealt with a serious identity crisis.

Moinuddin (28), a recent postgraduate who lives in the area said, "Look, I know there are extremist tendencies on both sides of the battle and I have been finding it difficult to reconcile my identity with whatever is happening." He said their homes had descended into madness and "humanity seems to be lost".

Ready for siege

And as colonies like Kardampuri and Kabir Nagar, stocked up and prepared for a situation if the rioters entered their colonies; CAA supporters wreaked havoc on Maujpur Road as more than 200 police personnel in full riot gear stood watching. The supporters, with country-made pistols, iron rods, wheel rods and other makeshift weapons consolidated their forces in small groups to "get to work".

The CAA supporters had divided themselves into small groups headed by a leader who gave instructions to "attack". By 1 pm on Tuesday afternoon, the CAA supporters were making headway to enter Kardampuri through the bridge near the Maujpur metro station. The strategy was simple — every time police fired tear gas shells towards Kardampuri, stone-pelting from their end would stop and the CAA supporters would move inch-by-inch towards the colony, all the while hurling stones.

Between 1 pm and 2 pm, the police had fired at least 16 tear gas shells towards Kardampuri and the violent mob of CAA supporters had burnt one building locally known as Qureshi Tower, set fire to an entire park in Yamuna Vihar and set ablaze more than half a dozen vehicles in the 1 km stretch between the Maujpur metro station and the Kardampuri main bridge.

As small groups of CAA supporters discussed, "We have to enter the Muslim homes and burn them out of there. Let's wait for the next tear gas to proceed. We can't come running back this time," one of the CAA supporters said - standing 10 metres away from a group of 15 police personnel in riot gear.

According to some agitators who spoke to Millennium Post, they were finding a way to block as many entry and exit points of Kardampuri and enter the colony from one side.

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