Distinction in travel journalism
Is independent travel journalism important to you?
Click here to keep it independent

26 Apr, 2014

Bhavnagar, Gujarat: Muslims free to live – if they change their name to a Hindu one

The bungalow on Bhavnagar’s Sanatorium Road needs a lick of paint but its spacious plot and location in a quiet residential area would draw the eye of many a prospective buyer.

It certainly caught the attention of Ali Asghar Zaveri, a Muslim scrap metal dealer, who completed the purchase at the beginning of the year and was preparing to move in. But the 30-year-old Mr Zaveri has not been able to occupy his property because many of his prospective Hindu neighbours do not want to live next to a Muslim.

For the last few months, residents of the Krishna Nagar neighbourhood have been sitting outside Mr Zaveri’s property, chanting Hindu prayers and banging metal plates in protest. This week, the issue earned national attention after the leader of an extremist Hindu organisation delivered a speech in which he allegedly urged the residents to occupy the property by force and not to fear the law.

“Go with stones, tyres and tomatoes,” Pravin Togadia, president of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), reportedly said.

Read the rest: India election 2014: Welcome to Bhavnagar, where Muslims are free to live – as long as they change their name – Asia – World – The Independent.