The communal violence which began on May 24 in the Nagorivaad area of Ahmedabad’s Shahpur locality has spread to several other communally sensitive parts of the city. On May 26, four more people were stabbed, two motorbikes were burnt and an AMTS bus and a private car were vandalised by the rioters. The violence began immediately after the funeral of Vijay Datania, who was allegedly assaulted and injured by unidentified assailants. In another incident, Rajnibhai and a part-time employee of the CBI court in the city were stabbed near St Xavier School in Mirzapur. A press photographer, who had taken photographs of the incident, was assaulted and his camera broken by an angry mob.
In a statement Fr. Cedric Prakash sj, Director Centre for Human Rights, Justice and Peace, has urged to halt communal violence in the city. He said, “We call upon those directly involved to stop this violence immediately and to help maintain peace and harmony. Above all, we request that nobody falls prey to the rumour mill. We also call upon the police and other authorities to book all those responsible for this violence, and to ensure security and peace for all citizens of the city.”