Anti-Muslim pogroms in India

Acts of communal violence against the minority Muslim population in India have occurred repeatedly since the countries partition in 1947. Pogroms have been incited by the nationalist group Shiv Sena in 1971, 1984, 1986 and 1992-93. In 1989 there were pogroms throughout the north of India.
According to Stanley Jeyaraja Tambiah the violence in Bhagalpur in 1989, Hashimpura in 1987 and in Moradabad 1980 were organized killings which amount to being pogroms. Praveen Swami believes these periodic pogroms have "scarred India's post independence history" and have also hindered India's cause in Jammu and Kashmir.
Paul Brass has said that though these acts of violence are usually referred to as riots they habitually become massacres of Muslims and pogroms with relatively few Hindus being killed. Brass has also said that in affected areas there are "“institutionalized riot systems,” in which the organizations of militant Hindu nationalism are deeply implicated." Brass also says that those who are a part of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh(RSS) such as the Bharatiya Janata Party(BJP), the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and the Bajrang Dal all have a central role in the violence. Since 1950 violent confrontations between Hindus and Muslims have caused an estimated 10000 dead. According to research by Raheel Dhattiwala and Michael Biggs killings are far higher in areas where the BJP face stiff electoral opposition than in areas in which they are already strong. Gyan Prakash has cautioned that the BJP actions in Gujarat does not equate to the entirety of India and it remains to be seen if the Hindutva movement are successful in deployment of this strategy nationwide.
According to Harsh Mander there is a consensus among observers that the 2002 pogrom and the Anti-Sikh pogrom in 1984 were a enabled by public agencies which includes those who had been in command. Ram Puniyani says that those who carry out these pograms are portrayed as "heroes" who have defended the majority from "anti-nationals". He also says that Thackery and Shiv Sena were victorious in the elections due to the pograms in the 1990's, as was Modi after the 2002 pogram.
After the violence in 2002 the Indian parliament introduced the Communal Violence (Prevention, Control and Rehabilitation of Victims) Bill in 2005. The bill was heavily criticised by human rights groups and lawyers.
A direct result of these pogroms has been a massive decrease in Dalits converting to Islam.
Assam
The Nellie massacre has been described as Estimates of those killed range from 3000 to 3300.
Bombay
The destruction of the Babri Mosque by nationalists lead directly to the violence in 1992. Toral Varia who is the Senior Special Correspondent for Outlook Magazine has said "the riots were a pre-planned pogrom", had been in the making since 1990 and that the destruction of the mosque was "the final provocation". This violence is widely reported as having been orchestrated by Shiv Sena a nationalist group led by Bal Thackeray, this group has been compared to the Nazi Party and their activities to ethnic cleansing.
Gujarat
Since Partition there have been several pogroms carried out against Muslims in Gujarat. These rapes were condoned by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party(BJP) whose refusal to intervene lead to the deaths of an estimated 2500 people and a further 200000 displaced. Chief Minister Narendra Modi has also been accused of initiating and condoning the pogrom as have the police and government officials who took part as they directed the violence and gave lists of Muslim owned properties to the extremists. Mallika Sarabhai harassed intimidated and falsely accused of trafficking. Three police officers were given punitive transfers by the BJP after they had successfully put down the pogrom in their wards so as not to interfere further in preventing the violence. According to Brass the only conclusion from the evidence which is available points to a methodical pogrom which was carried out with exceptional brutality and was highly coordinated.
Depictions
The film Parzania which is based on the Gulbarg Society massacre which occurred during the 2002 pogrom was boycotted by cinemas in Gujarat over fear of sparking another riot. The film documents atrocities such as Entire families of Muslims were incinerated in their homes by crowds of cheering Hindu extremists armed with knives and clubs, witnesses said. Women were chased down and gang-raped, or had kerosene poured down their throats and set afire. Children were hacked to death in front of their parents, who then met the same fate.

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