Conflicts

Communal conflicts have periodically plagued India since it became independent in 1947. The roots of such strife lie largely in the underlying tensions between sections of its majority Hindu and minority Muslim communities, which emerged under the Raj and during the bloody Partition of India. Such conflict also stems from the competing ideologies of Hindu nationalism versus Islamic fundamentalism and Islamism; both are prevalent in parts of the Hindu and Muslim populations. Alongside other major Indian independence leaders, Mahatma Gandhi and his shanti sainiks ("peace soldiers") worked to quell early outbreaks of religious conflict in Bengal, including riots in Calcutta (now in West Bengal) and Noakhali District (in modern-day Bangladesh) that accompanied Muhammad Ali Jinnah's Direct Action Day, which was launched on 16 August 1946. These conflicts, waged largely with rocks and knives and accompanied by widespread looting and arson, were crude affairs. Explosives and firearms, which are rarely found in India, were far less likely to be used.^[69]

Many of Ahmedabad's buildings were set on fire by Hindu and Muslim mobs during the 2002 Gujarat violence.

Major post-independence communal conflicts include the 1984 Anti-Sikh Riots, which followed the storming of the Harimandir Sahib by the Indian Army; heavy artillery, tanks, and helicopters were employed against the radical Sikh separatists hiding inside, causing heavy damage to Sikhism's holiest shrine. Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, who sought independence for the proposed Sikh theocracy of Khalistan, was killed by Indian troops during the assault; in total, the assault caused the deaths of up to 3,000 soldiers, militants, and civilians.^[70] This triggered Indira Gandhi's assassination by her outraged Sikh bodyguards on 31 October 1984, which set off a four-day period during which Sikhs were massacred; some estimates state that more than 4,000 were killed.^[70] Other incidents include the 1992 Bombay Riots that followed the demolition of the Babri Mosque as a result of the Ayodhya debate, and the 2002 Gujarat violence that followed the Godhra Train Burning—in the latter, more than 2,000 Muslims were killed.^[71] Terrorist activities such as the 2005 Ram Janmabhoomi attack in Ayodhya, the 2006 Varanasi bombings, the 2006 Jama Masjid explosions, and the 11 July 2006 Mumbai Train Bombings are often blamed on communalism. Lesser incidents plague many towns and villages; representative was the killing of five people in Mau, Uttar Pradesh during Hindu-Muslim rioting, which was triggered by the proposed celebration of a Hindu festival.^[71]

Major religious riots, since Independence

Year	Riot	State / Region	Cause	Aftermath
1984	Anti Sikh massacre	Delhi	Assassination of Indira Gandhi	2,700 Sikhs killed[72]
1992-1993	Bombay Riots	Mumbai	Demolition of Babri Masjid	900 people dead
2002	Gujarat Riots	Gujarat	Godhra train burning	1,044 people killed; 790 Muslims and 254 Hindus (including those killed in the Godhra train fire)
2008	Kandhamal riots	Kandhamal district, Orissa	Murder of Swami Lakshmanananda	Over 20 killed and over 12,000 displaced