TRIVANDRUM, 11 October 2003 — Some 521 refugees belonging to 72 of about 400 Muslim families who had fled the Marad beach near northern Kerala city of Calicut after the May 2 communal carnage returned to their homes in the fishing hamlet yesterday amid high security.
The rest of the families would be rehabilitated over the next three days, District Collector T.O. Sooraj said.
The authorities began the process of rehabilitation after a meeting of Hindu and Muslim leaders convened by Chief Minister A.K. Antony last week agreed to a peace package that included better compensation for the victims and a probe into the conspiracy angle by the federally-controlled Central Bureau of Investigations (CBI) after five months of intense lobbying by the Sangh Parivar or the Hindu solidarity led by VHP leader Pravin Togadia.
The issue also caused deep political divide with a powerful section in the ruling Congress party led by senior leader K. Karunakaran and the Marxist-led opposition finding a common cause. The plight of the refugees had also played a major role in the defeat of the Congress candidate handpicked by Antony in the recent Ernakulam by-poll, a factor that prompted the authorities to faster action.
The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) district secretary V.V. Dakshinamoorthy and Congress district secretary M. Veeran Kutty have already protested the manner in which the compensation, including jobs, were offered. They demanded similar package for the victims of the 2002 January riots, in which three Muslims and two Hindus were killed.
The families from the Chaliyam and Kappackal relief camps were taken to their own houses in the vehicles provided by the district authorities. They were also provided with provisions, enough for a week, and beds as every house was looted of everything, from valuable electronic instruments to the groceries. The authorities also repaired the damaged houses.
The collector, who personally led the rehabilitation process on the beach, said the families would also be provided with drinking water as the miscreants dumped the waste into the wells.
The rehabilitation was done in the less sensitive areas. The members of these families were also in custody for involvement in the carnage, in which eight Hindus and a Muslim were killed. The collector said he did not expect any problem when others too go back to their homes. “There is a firm assurance from Araya Samajam (association of Hindu anglers),” he said.
Police have arrested some 130 Muslims in connection with the killings and they are kept in jail.
Many of those who returned to their houses yesterday complained that the cleaning and the repair work of the houses were not done properly. However, they do not expect any problems with their Hindu neighbors. In fact, it was an emotional reunion for many Hindu and Muslim families after five months.
The authorities, however, are not taking any risks. Several civil and police officers were camping in the area for the past two days examining every aspect threadbare. The hamlet has been divided into north and south zones and put under the charge of two Deputy Superintendents of Police (DySP).
These zones are further divided into ten sectors clearly identifying and keeping record of each house.
City Police Commissioner T.K. Vinod Kumar said more than 300 policemen, besides the officers of the rank of Sub Inspector (SI) and above, will be deployed daily on alternative shift.
