Delhi Riots: A Tale of Burn and Blame – A searing film

Delhi Riots are the latest blot on our nation’s accommodative and tolerant society. A well-oiled media machinery controlled by Left, now in cahoots with Islamist forces, created an orchestrated narrative of Muslim persecution that went on to claim that it was a ‘pogrom’ despite facts to the contrary. Such is the strength of this lobby that complete story is never known in the smokes and mirrors created by it. No one, specially, from visual media dares to go out and present the complete truth or even the other side of the story.

 

Kamlesh K Mishra, an award winning director decided to put his head on the virtual chopping block of the left ecosystem and produced a documentary based on evidence on the ground, through the conversations with Hindu victims. A member of the audience asked Kamlesh, “Why he chose only Hindu victims and a Muslim who shared his angst at his community leaders’ vicious designs.” His honest answer was that the Muslim victims’ story had already been given widest possible exposure and a story of the victimhood sold to the world. So, he chose to tell the stories of the victims who were turned into ghosts whom one couldn’t see. Story of a school that was vandalised, its library burnt for four days. Of a Dilbar Negi who was chopped to pieces like a butcher chops a goat. Of his mother in far off Uttarakhand who has not been told about the condition her son’s body was found in. Of an young intelligence officer who was lynched so cruelly that it defies the word cruelty. Of a young girl who was about to get married but her jewellery and entire cash looted. Of a young Muslim boy who wishes to break the shackles of Maulvis and live a normal life with his neighbours of different religions, shun politics of hate and division, wants population control so everyone can get educated and employed gainfully.

 

 

The story of Delhi Riots is told simply by the director – only from the experience of the victims. He doesn’t add any comment of his own or nor impose views. That is the strength of this documentary. Some of the conversations and images haunt you for long. Since clips are not doctored or recreated, their raw feel singes you.

 

 

Police officer who got nearly killed tells us that it was a trap laid by the rioters who called police to help them. How, after reaching the location they were trapped inside the narrow lanes, surrounded and lynched. The school manager and local citizens tell us that Muslim children were taken away on the fateful day by their mothers before the afternoon of 24th January. The school run by the brother of infamous accused AAP leader Tahir Hussein declared holiday for 24th January though it was an exam day in the school calendar. Shops marked, looted or burnt selectively. An eye witness, who narrowly escaped death after being lynched badly, rejects the story of outsiders attacking their locality, tells us that you couldn’t be recognised and targeted unless locals pointed you out. Many eye witnesses talk about common helmets and jackets worn by the attackers. One can imagine the cruelty unleashed in a planned way with collection of stones, bricks, acid bags, ropes hung at specific places to climb down onto targeted places, huge catapult built before the riots. One can’t organise these materials in bulk in specific places within hours just because a politician asks police to clear the roads for common citizens. The blood thirsty mobs, the women strategically put in the front in siege of the metro station and in Shaheen Bagh all come alive before you.

 

 

Though, as a person who went on TV regularly beginning from the Shaheen Bagh fraud perpetrated on the people of India, who saw clips of riots; even I was shocked to the core looking at sheer bestiality of the mobs when brought together in a coherent manner. One eye witness, infact, says that the Muslim community was told that on a certain dates all the Muslims will be thrown out of their homes. This fake news spread by word of mouth led to this orgy of violence. That this entire violence was engineered on wrong representation of the CAA bill and patently false arguments makes these 5 day riots more despicable and alarming.

 

As I watched the hordes of ‘frightened’ minority members swarming on the streets with various arms and attacking the Hindu colony my mind went back to 1921 Moplah violence, 1946 Direct Action and 1947 Partition riots. Being a Punjabi, I have heard many stories of the horrors of Partition. I have read about 1921 and 1946. Nothing prepares you for watching the mob violence and narration by the victims on screen. This story led my thoughts to revisit the abovementioned recent events. I am not talking of far off history. In none of the riots were Hindus the instigators. 1921 and 1946 were purely religion based attack on Kafirs. 1947 was result of Partition. Here again, Hindus were the victims of vicious violence and did not retaliate till a train of raped and killed Hindus was sent with a provocative note.

 

 

The recent riots make us wonder if they were not created by vested interests to provoke Hindus. Hindus in Delhi riots were surrounded by Muslim colonies on all sides. As an eye witness said, was it to force Hindus to leave like they were forced in Kashmir valley? If you look at these riots in conjunction with the ‘instant’ riots in Bengaluru over a FB post and condition of Hindus in Muslim dominated areas in Bengal or in Haryana, we can’t view Delhi riots as a local phenomenon. If one joins the dots, it is clear that the long term plan to convert Bharat from Dar-ul-Haram to Dar-ul-Islam is in the works, while for Left of various hues it is breaking India project. Shaheen Bagh dharna that led to Delhi riots also showed the open alliance of Islamists, faux liberals and Left-Maoists. Eagerness of Maoists and Islamists to use any platform to further their idea of breaking India led them to use even farmer agitation to spread divisive agenda that included demand for release of their comrades from jail, and visit of burqa clad women to the farmers’ camping sites. We, as Bharatiyas will have to face these challenges head on. This documentary is able to create enough sense of uneasiness to make you think. Think you must, so watch you must.

 

 

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