NEW DELHI: Whilst India celebrates the Muslim holiday of Eid, it is not a happy time for everyone. Almost 50,000 people of northeastern origin have been displaced in the past ten days by a fear of mob attacks against them in the rest of the country. They have been fleeing back to their homes in the northeast in such numbers that the media has been referring to it as nothing less than an exodus. The relief camps set up in the state of Assam are over crowded and teeming with people who have recently fled from different parts of the country. The people came because of rumours that they would be attacked by mobs belonging to another religion or because they received text messages with reportedly doctored images of massacred villagers. It was only after they returned home that they realised nothing was quite as it seemed. A state of confusion has been added to the initial fear, as the returnees are now unsure whether they should return to the jobs they hurriedly left.
Pakistan has denied any role in the matter. The Indian government meanwhile has banned bulk text messaging to stop the spread of disinformation. In Assam, the state where ethnic violence in July led to loss of life and damaged property, over 17,000 policemen have been deployed to maintain peace besides several columns of paramilitary and army personnel. In the refugee camps, the numbers are swelling. The people have no identity documents and no money, and it is fast becoming a huge humanitarian crisis for the local and central government. The problem is confounding because there are many levels. On one level, there is the tribal-Muslim conflict. The region borders Bangladesh so there is an international element as well. Then, there is regional politics as well. However, now the biggest crisis is of the hundreds of thousands of refugees living in terrible conditions in relief camps, and the need for them to be rehabilitated.
-CNA/ac
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