Gujarat authorities try to block Karwan-e-Mohabbat's campaign for peace, speakers notice atmosphere of fear

The caravan bus

By A Representative
Karwan-e-Mohabbat, led by well-known bureaucrat-turned-human rights activist Harsh Mander, reached Ahmedabad on Monday from Rajasthan amidst surprising revelation circles in Gujarat government allegedly pressurised owners of halls across Ahmedabad not to provide a space to hold to an open dialogue with citizens on why it is necessary as never before to bring about rapprochement and peace between different communities.
John Dayal, a well-known minority-rights activist who is part of the Caravan of Love, told Counterview that even civil society activists were pressurised not to support the cause upheld by Mander's team. "It was sad to see some them succumb to pressure", he said. The result was, instead of holding its dialogue in a prominent hall in Ahmedabad, it had to depend on whatever space that was available in Juhapura, one of Asia's biggest Muslim ghetto, in Gandhi Hall.
Even as the dialogue was on, cops outside, alighting from a police van, were seen asking organisers whether the meeting would be over " soon". The cops were heard saying, "They have been permitted to hold the meeting between 2 PM and 7 PM, not beyond. They should better wind up before 7 PM. They can't be permitted any longer."
The caravan, which will end its month-long campaign at Porbandar on October 2 after traversing several states, including Assam, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, met with resistance at Behror, Rajasthan, where travelling in a luxury bus, was stoned, and he had to sit on dharna for not being allowed to pay respects to Pehlu Khan, who was lynched in April by vigilantes on suspicion of transporting cows for slaughter.

Vinay, Charul campaign singers

Speaking in Ahmedabad, Mander, who came for the dialogue after meeting the family of Mohammad Ayub, who was lynched in Ahmedabad exactly a year ago, September 16, 2016, said there was an "atmosphere of fear and desperation, especially among minorities across India and Gujarat", adding, the only way to counter it is by "creating an atmosphere of peace".
Addressing the audience, which consisted mainly Muslims and Dalits, Mander said, "All through our caravan we found that, locally, there was very little remorse for what was happening with minorities." Referring to what he had seen at one place, he added, "We were told by people of a dominant community that the only way to buy peace would be to pardon them for what they did with the minority, and the latter would be allowed back into the village."
Speaking on the occasion, Gujarat-based human rights expert Gagan Sethi questioned on what he called "mad development model" which is being promoted by the Government of India. "They are spending more than Rs 1 lakh crore of Japanese loan on bullet train. Why couldn't the Japanese be persuaded instead to spend money on quality roads, which have all got broken in Ahmedabad following the rains?"
Gujarat's top Dalit rights leader Jignesh Mevani asked the audience to "unite" and ensure the defeat of the "fascist BJP" in the forthcoming assembly elections in Gujarat, insisting,

Harsh Mander (left)

"This should be our one line agenda." He said, "There is a need to combine the fight against the fascistic ways like lynching of minorities and Dalits, and economic demands. We must ask: What has happened to 50 lakh houses the BJP had promised, for instance."
Senior High Court advocate Anand Yagnik, even as backing Mevani's call to back the "less evil" Congress during the assembly polls, contended, "The BJP came to power by creating an atmosphere of fear in the majority community by seeking to project the minorities in an extremely negative light. The Dalit-Muslim unity could be the answer."

Comments

The soundtrack of resistance: How 'Sada Sada Ya Nabi' is fueling the Iran war

By Syed Ali Mujtaba* The Persian track “ Sada Sada Ya Nabi ye ” by Hossein Sotoodeh has taken the world by storm. This viral media has cut across linguistic barriers to achieve cult status, reaching over 10 million views. The electrifying music and passionate rendition by the Iranian singer have resonated across the globe, particularly as the high-intensity military conflict involving Iran entered its second month in March 2026.

Kolkata dialogue flags policy and finance deficit in wetland sustainability

By A Representative Wetlands were the focus of India–Germany climate talks in Kolkata, where experts from government, business, and civil society stressed both their ecological importance and the urgent need for stronger conservation frameworks.

Beyond Lata: How Asha Bhosle redefined the female voice with her underrated versatility

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat* The news of iconic Asha Bhosle’s ‘untimely’ demise has shocked music lovers across the country. Asha Tai was 92 years young. Normally, people celebrate a passing at this age, but Asha Bhosle—much like another legend, Dev Anand—never made us feel she was growing old. She was perhaps the most versatile artist in Bombay cinema. Hailing from a family devoted to music, Asha’s journey to success and fame was not easy. Her elder sister, Lata Mangeshkar, had already become the voice of women in cinema, and most contemporaries like Shamshad Begum, Suraiya, and Noor Jehan had slowly faded into oblivion. Frankly, there was no second or third to Lata Mangeshkar; she became the first—and perhaps the only—choice for music directors and all those who mattered in filmmaking. Asha started her musical journey at age 10 with a Marathi film, but her first break in Hindustani cinema came with the film "Chunariya" (1948). Though she was not the first choice of ...

Maoist activity in India: Weakening structures, 'shifts' in leadership, strategy and ideology

By Harsh Thakor* Recent statements by government representatives have suggested that Maoism in India has been effectively eliminated, citing the weakening of central leadership and intensified security operations. These claims follow sustained counterinsurgency efforts across key regions, including central and eastern India. However, available information from security agencies and independent observers indicates that while the organizational structure of the CPI (Maoist) has been significantly disrupted, elements of the movement remain active. Reports acknowledge the continued presence of cadres in certain forested regions such as Bastar and parts of Dandakaranya, alongside smaller, decentralized units adapting their operational strategies.

'Fraudulent': Ex-civil servants urge President to halt Odisha tribal land dispossession

By A Representative A collective of 81 retired civil servants from the Constitutional Conduct Group has written to the President of India expressing alarm over what they describe as the wrongful dispossession of tribal lands in Odisha’s Rayagada district. The letter, dated April 19, 2026, highlights violent clashes in Kantamal village where police personnel reportedly injured over 70 tribal residents attempting to protect their community rights.

From Manesar to Noida: Workers take to streets for bread, media looks away

By Sunil Kumar* Across several states in India, a workers’ movement is gathering momentum. This is not a movement born of luxury or ambition, nor a demand for power-sharing within the state. At its core lies a stark and basic plea: the right to survive with dignity—adequate food, and wages sufficient to afford it.

Dhandhuka violence: Gujarat minority group seeks judicial action, cites targeted arson

By A Representative The Minority Coordination Committee (MCC) Gujarat has written to the Director General of Police seeking judicial action in connection with recent violence in Dhandhuka town of Ahmedabad district, alleging targeted attacks on properties belonging to members of the Muslim community following a fatal altercation between two bike riders on April 18.

Why link women’s reservation to delimitation? The unspoken political calculus

By Vikas Meshram* April 16, 2026, is likely to be recorded as a special day in the history of Indian democracy. In a three-day special session of Parliament, the central government is set to introduce a comprehensive package of three historic bills: the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2026; the Delimitation Bill, 2026; and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026. The stated purpose of all three is the same: to implement the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam (106th Constitutional Amendment) passed in 2023. However, the political intent concealed behind these measures — and their impact on the federal balance — is far more profound. It is absolutely essential to understand this.

Midnight weeping: The sociology of tragic vision in Badri Narayan’s poetry

By Ravi Ranjan* Badri Narayan, a distinguished Hindi poet and social scientist, occupies a unique position in contemporary Indian intellectual life by bridging the worlds of creative literature and critical social inquiry. His poetic journey began significantly with the 1993 collection 'Saca Sune Hue Kaï Dina Hue' (Truth Heard Many Days Ago). As a social historian and cultural anthropologist, Narayan pioneered a methodological shift away from elite archives toward the oral traditions and folk myths of marginalized communities. He eventually legitimized "folk-ethnography" as a rigorous academic discipline during his tenure as Director of the G.B. Pant Social Science Institute.

Counterview

Search This Blog