A must watch video. This man Ashok, a roadside cobbler by profession, was 27 when riots broke out in Gujarat in 2002. His photo with a saffron scarf wrapped round the forehead and both hands up and anger writ large on face came to symbolise the violence of Hindu communalism. He is now 40 when this video was shot. He gives a vivid account of what happened that day and how he wrapped a saffron piece of cloth around his forehead to highlight his Hindu identity among the marauders so that he could safely reach his home. The anger on his face was against killing of innocent people at Godhra and elsewhere in Gujarat and destruction of property and the loss of his job. There is no loose end and contradiction in his narrative which makes his version reliable. The truth and innocence in his words strike us. He comes out in the interview as a strong believer in and practitioner of non-violence and communal harmony. youtube/watch?v=4VFCJdZEOv0
Posted on: Sat, 25 Oct 2014 17:28:03 +0000