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Hindu mob burnt to death a Muslim

03-05-2006

From Agencies :

A Muslim was burnt to death by a Hindu mob in a western Indian town in three days of rioting. Seven people have died to date. More than 70 people have been injured in the rioting.

The 30-year-old victim, who worked in an oil refinery, was returning from a late shift when he was surrounded by a mob of hundreds, including activists of hardline Hindu groups linked to the nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, which rules Gujarat.

The riot began when the two-centuries-old Muslim shrine was demolished by the Indian authorities in Vadodara, Baroda, 120 km (75 miles) south of Ahmedabad, the main city of Gujarat state, as it obstructed the flow of traffic, according to officials.

Four people died after being shot by police trying to stop the violence, and two others died from stab wounds sustained during the rioting that broke out when municipal teams reached the site to start the demolition.

Vadodara and other Gujarat towns witnessed intense religious riots in 2002 in which some 2,500 Muslims were killed. The state government, headed by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, was widely accused of looking the other way and doing little to prevent the rioting.

On Tuesday, authorities rejected allegations that police were acting against the Muslim community.

''This is not the only incident of an anti-encroachment demolition. Many temples have also been pulled down,'' Swarup said.

''No particular religious structures were targeted. Local Muslims were informed well in advance and they had agreed to the shrine being removed.'' Vadodara is 110 kilometers (70 miles) north of Gujarat's main city, Ahmadabad.


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