ALIGARH MUSLIM UNIVERSITY

DEPARTMENT OF LAW
SOCIOLOGY

TOPIC - COMMUNALISM

SUBMITTED TO : DR. Kaleemullah Sir

SUBMITTED BY :

NAME : SHIVAM SINGH

ROLL NO. - 23LLBWA158

SECTION - A SEMESTER- II

ENROLMENT NUMBER : GL8599

EMAIL ID - shivamsingh109@gmail.com
 CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION

2. DEFINITIONS OF COMMUNALISM

3. MAIN CHARACTERISTICS OF COMMUNALISM

4. COMMUNALISM IN INDIA

5. REASONS BEHIND COMMUNALISM

6. MAJOR INCIDENTS OF COMMUNAL VIOLENCE

IN INDIA

7. FACTORS RESPONSIBLE FOR COMMUNAL

VIOLENCE

8. MEASURES TO DEAL WITH COMMUNALISM

9. CONCLUSION

10. BIBLIOGRAPHY
 INTRODUCTION

Communalism has become one of the biggest menaces of modern India.

Problem that arises between the socio-religious relations of the people who
belong to various minority communities on the one hand and the majority
community on the other, can be referred to as “communalism” or “communal
problem.” Communalism and communal riots normally arise when religious
matters are politicalized. Communalism is often understood as an ideology
which states that the society is divided into religious communities whose
interest differ and are, at times, even oppose to each other. It is kind of
antagonism which is found between religious.

It was the spread of nationalism which gave rise to communalism in India,

eventually. Communalism can be seen as having certain prominent stages:

The foremost stage is the setting up of an ideology and seeing the people of one
religion as a group and identifying with themselves.

The second stage is believing that the social, cultural, political and economic
interests of one religion are dissimilar and divergent from others and that there
is no commonality.

The third stage is the idea that interests of all religions are mutually
incompatible and cannot exist partially. One stage leads to another and hence
the spread of communal ideas must be stop at the very inception itself. Once,
the people start believing and accepting that other religions are antagonistic to
each other, a feeling of hostility and intolerance towards others religions thus
leading to communal movements can be seen.
 DEFINITIONS OF COMMUNALISM

Bipan Chandra : According to Bipan Chandra, communalism is “the belief

that because a group of people following a particular religion, they have
common social, political and economic interests”. He further adds that religious
distinction is the fundamental distinction that overrides all other distinctions. In
Indian context, he cites that Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs have dissimilar social,
economic, cultural and political interests as they are different religious entities.
Hence, if one communal group seeks to better its social, political and economic
interests then it will be a loss for the other groups. According to him, the Indian
people can act socially and cannot act in any other manner except as members
of such homogeneous communities whose interests and outlook remains the
same.

Bipan Chandra has outlined three elements of communalism:

● Communalism is strong among those people who have common secular

interests.
● Secular interests of different religions are divergent from that of the
others.
● Interests of different communities are different and hostile to others.

Harbans Mukhia : According to historian Harbans Mukhia, “communalism is

the phenomenon of religious differences between groups, often leading to
tension and even rioting between them.” He elaborates that people of different
religious communities becomes hostile when they have to live together and
share common economic, political and other scarce resources.

D.E. Smith : Communalism as the function of religious communities in a way,

generally considered detrimental to the interests of other groups or of the nation
as a whole.

T.K. Oomen: T.K. Oomen, a famous sociologist, has suggested that there are
six dimension of communalism. These are:
1. Assimilationist (or) Communist Communalism : Under this type of
communalism, small religious groups are assimilated into big religions
group. For instance, scheduled tribes, Jains, Sikhs, Buddhists are Hindus
and they should be covered by Hindu Marriage Act, 1955. In addition, all
of them should be covered with the same personal law. Hence, a
Sikh,Buddhist, Jain does not identify himself/ herself too much different
from a Hindu and Hindu religious beliefs and sentiments.
2. Welfarist Communalism : In this type of communalism, emphasis is
placed on the welfare for the particular community. Providing education,
scholarship, financial assistance in higher studies, matrimonial assistance,
skill development, residential accommodation are examples of the
services provided under this type of communalism. These welfarist
organisations are involved in different kind of charitable and other social
upliftment activities related to their particular community alone.
3. Retreatist Communalism : In this type of communalism, small religious
community keeps itself aloof from politically related activities. They keep
themselves away from politics, for example, people belonging to Bahai
religious community keep themselves away from any political activity.
4. Retaliatory Communalism : In this type of communalism, people
belonging to one religious community attempts to harm, hurt and injure
the members of other religious communities. In India, this type of
communalism can be witnessed where the ‘fight between different groups
either religious or caste is omnipresent. A very good example of this case
is the Godhra Riots and its aftermath.
5. Separatist Communalism : In this type of communalism, one religious
community decides to maintain its cultural specificity and demands a
separate territorial state within the country, for example, the demand for
Gorkhaland by Gorkhas, Bodoland by Bodos, Vidharbha in Maharashtra,
separatist tendencies in Mizoram.
6. Secessionist Communalism : In this type of communalism, a religious
community demands for a separate political identity and insists to have a
separate state. For example, the demand for Khalistan, the demand for an
independent Kashmir by militant groups in Kashmir falls under this
category. A very recent example is the demand for ‘Nagalim’ from the
erstwhile parts of Nagaland and Myanmar. Of all the above types of
communalism, the last three categories create problems by perpetuating
communal riots, terrorism and insurgency.
 MAIN CHARACTERISTICS OF COMMUNALISM

The main characteristics of communalism are as follows:

1. It is an ideological concept,

2. Based on orthodox principles,

3. Based on intolerance,

4. Propagation of intense dislike towards other religions,

5. Considering owns own religion to be superior,

6. Working towards the elimination of other religions and their values,

7. Making use of extremist tactics including use of violence against people

belonging to other religions and faith,

8. Believes that followers of same religion have common political,

economic and social interests, which are different from beliefs of other
communities.

9. Believes that followers of other religions to be completely incompatible,

antagonist and hostile.

10.Believes that specific interests of a particular community can be

promoted by only maintaining a separate identity so that their interests
are served better.

11.Tends to believe that communal interests are superior to the national

interests.

12.Treats citizens of a nation not as citizens but as members of particular

religious community.
 13.In its extreme form, it demands separate nation for a particular
community. It resorts to violence, fraud, and even gets assistance from
foreign powers to achieve their political goals.

14.It leads to abuse of power.

15.It is used by the elites as a tool for exploiting the communal identities of
the poorer sections of people belonging to their own religion.

16.It is engineered by opportunistic political and economic interest of groups

within political parties.

Communalism, in a broad sense, means a strong attachment to one’s own

community. In popular discourse in India, it is understood as unhealthy
attachment to one’s own religion.

1. It’s an ideology that, in order to unify the community, suppresses

distinctions within the community and emphasises the essential unity of
the community against other communities.

2. In this way it promotes belief in orthodox tenets and principles,

intolerance and hatred of other religions and thus, divides the society.

3. Positive aspect of communalism stands for the affinity of an individual

towards his own community involving efforts for the social and economic
upliftment of his community.

4. However, in negative connotation, it is an ideology which emphasises the

separate identity of a religious group in relation to other groups with a
tendency to promote its own interests at the expense of the others.
 COMMUNALISM IN INDIA

1. Communalism as a political philosophy has its roots in the religious and

cultural diversity of India.

2. It has been used as a political propaganda tool to create divide,

differences and tensions between the communities on the basis of
religious and ethnic identity leading to communal hatred and violence.

3. In ancient Indian society, people of different faith coexisted peacefully.

4. Buddha was perhaps the first Indian prophet who gave the concept of
secularism.

5. Meanwhile, Kings like Ashoka followed a policy of peace and religious

tolerance.

6. While, Religion was an important part of people’s lives but there was no
communal ideology or communal politics.

7. Rulers like Akbar and Sher Shah Suri followed the religious policy of
toleration towards different cultures and tradition practised across the
country.

8. As a modern phenomenon it has arose as a result of British colonial

impact and the response of Indian social strata.
 REASONS BEHIND COMMUNALISM

The major factors that contributed towards the emergence and growth of
communalism in modern India involves:

1. British Imperialism and their Policy of “Divide and Rule”.

2. Disappointment and disaffection among young and aspiring middle class

youth, caused by stagnant agriculture, absence of modern industrial
development and inadequate employment opportunities, which is being
exploited by political opportunists.

3. Hindu and Muslim revivalist movements.

4. A communal and distorted view of Indian history, taught in school and

colleges played a major role in the rise and growth of communal feelings
among the masses.

5. Separatism and isolation among Muslims.

6. Rise of communal and fundamentalist parties.

MAJOR INCIDENTS OF COMMUNAL VIOLENCE IN

INDIA

1. Communal violence is a phenomenon where people belonging to two

different religious communities mobilise and attack each other with
feelings of hatred and enmity.

2. The partition of India witnessed mass bloodshed and violence that

continued up to 1949.
3. No major communal disturbances took place until 1961 when the
Jabalpur riots shook the country due to economic competition between a
Hindu and a Muslim bidi manufacturer than any electoral competition.

4. In the 1960s – A series of riots broke out particularly in the eastern part
of India - Rourkela, Jamshedpur and Ranchi - in 1964, 1965 and 1967, in
places where Hindu refugees from then East Pakistan were being settled.

5. In September, 1969, riots in Ahmedabad shook the conscience of the

nation. The apparent cause was the Jan Sangh passing a resolution on
Indianisation of Muslims to show its intense opposition to Indira Gandhi's
leftward thrust.

6. In April, 1974, violence occurred in the chawl or tenement, in the Worli

neighbourhood of Mumbai after the police attempted to disperse a rally of
the Dalit Panthers that had turned violent, angered by clashes with the
Shiv Sena.

7. In February, 1983, the violence took place in Nellie as fallout of the

decision to hold the controversial state elections in 1983 in the midst of
the Assam Agitation, after Indira Gandhi’s decision to give 4 million
immigrants from Bangladesh the right to vote. It has been described as
one of the worst pogroms since World War II.

8. In October, 1984, the anti-Sikh riots broke out after the assassination of
Indira Gandhi, where more than 4000 Sikhs were killed in Delhi, Uttar
Pradesh and other parts of India.

9. Meanwhile, the Bombay-Bhiwandi riots were instigated by the Shiv Sena

when it jumped on the Hindutva bandwagon to revive the political
fortunes of the Shiv Sena which had lost its appeal.
 FACTORS RESPONSIBLE FOR COMMUNAL
VIOLENCE

1. Communalization of Politics: Electoral politics in India has become

more expensive and competitive. Different political parties are not
hesitating to use any means, fair or foul, for electoral victory. They even
create communal tensions and try to take political advantage out of it.
Concessions are granted to various minority groups for appeasing them.
Each and every party is playing communal card and if situation so
demands, is not hesitating to join hands with the communal parties for
coming to power. Communalization of politics as a process is supporting
the growth of communalism in India.

2. Psychological Causes: Hatred, disgust, deceptive and misleading

dogmas give rise to communal tensions. Stereotyped beliefs of both the
communities towards one another tend to prevail since long. The Hindus
construe the Muslims as fanatics and staunch fundamentalist. The lack of
interpersonal trust and mutual understanding between two communities
often result in perception of threat, harassment, fear and danger in one
community against the members of the other community , which in turn
leads to fight, hatred and anger phobia.

3. Economic Causes : Uneven development, class divisions, poverty and

unemployment aggravates insecurity in the common men which make
them vulnerable to political manipulation.

4. History of Communal Riots : Probability of recurrence of communal

riots in a town where communal riots have already taken place once or
twice is stronger than in a town when such riots have never occurred.

5. Isolation and Economic Backwardness of Muslim Community : The

failure to adopt the scientific and technological education and thus,
insufficient representation in the public service, industry and trade etc has
led to the feeling of relative deprivation among Muslims.
6. The resurgence of Hindu-Muslim economic competition, especially
among the lower and middle class strata has fuelled the communal
ideology.

7. Role of Media : It is often accused of sensationalism and disseminates

rumours as "news" which sometimes resulted into further tension and
riots between two rival religious groups.

8. Social media has also emerged as a powerful medium to spread messages

relating to communal tension or riot in any part of the country.

MEASURES TO DEAL WITH COMMUNALISM

1. There is a need to reform the present criminal justice system, speedy

trials and adequate compensation to the victims, which may act as a
deterrent.

2. Increase in representation of minority communities and weaker sections

in all wings of law-enforcement, training of forces in human rights,
especially in the use of firearms in accordance with UN code of conduct.

3. Codified guidelines for the administration, specialised training for the

police force to handle communal riots and setting up special investigating
and prosecuting agencies can help in damping major communal
disgruntlement.

4. Emphasis on value-oriented education with focus on the values of peace,

non-violence, compassion, secularism and humanism as well as
developing scientific temper (enshrined as a fundamental duty) and
rationalism as core values in children both in schools and
colleges/universities, can prove vital in preventing communal feelings.
5. Governments can adopt models followed by countries like Malaysia that
has developed early-warning indicators to prevent racial clashes. The
Malaysian Ethnic Relations Monitoring System (known by its acronym
Mesra).

6. Also the Hong Kong model of combating communalism by setting up a

“Race Relation Unit” to promote racial harmony and facilitate integration
of ethnic minorities, can be emulated by India.

7. RRU has established a hotline for complaints and inquiries on racial

discrimination. Meanwhile, to create awareness about communal
harmony, RRU talks to schools on the culture of ethnic minorities and the
concept of racial discrimination.

8. Government can encourage and support civil society and NGOs to run
projects that help create communal awareness, build stronger community
relation and cultivate values of communal harmony in the next
generation.

9. There is a need for minority welfare schemes to be launched and

implemented efficiently by the administration to address the challenges
and various forms of discrimination faced by them in jobs, housing and
daily life.

10.A proactive approach by the National Foundation for Communal

Harmony (NFCH), the body responsible for promoting communal
harmony, is needed.

11.NFCH provides assistance for the physical and psychological

rehabilitation of the child victims of communal, caste, ethnic or terrorist
violence, besides promoting communal harmony, fraternity and national
integration.

12.Legislation is required to curb communal violence. Communal Violence

(Prevention, Control and Rehabilitation of Victims) Bill, 2005 must be
enacted soon.
 CONCLUSION

Communalism, today is spreading in the Indian society like a highly

infectious fungal disease,which is eating up democratic and secular politics
by its very roots. It is the weed that was cultivated by the Britishers in the
beginning of the 20th century which even after so many decades can be seen
to be prevailing enormously.

Communalism today is as strong as ever. It does not allow a peaceful

co-existence of human beings in a society. It hampers the very idea of
secularism and respect for every individual irrespective of his religion. There
should not exist a place for such a concept in a country like ours which is the
home to people of various diverse cultures.

The process of eliminating communalism is something every Indian must

contribute to. Today a lot of mob lynching attacks on individual beings in the
name of incident are being done. Such practices have to stop. Manners in
which communalism can be curbed must be adopted. The first step that has
to be taken is derecognition of political parties which by their actions or
policies encourage or promote conclusion. It needs to be understood that it is
not the religion that is causing communalism but its people.

People must stop identifying themselves with religion and start identifying
themselves with their nation and start addressing that the social, economic,
political and cultural interests of the entire country are similar.
Communalization of the state and of the political elite in power has to be
checked because it leads to political and ideological support to communalism
by the state apparatuses, including the media under state control.
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

● Kunal Chattopadhyay, Communalism and Indian

history

● Communal Riots in India: Key Incidents and Trends

● https://www.gktoday.in/gk/communal-riots-in-india-
key-incidents-and-trends/#Peculiar_Features_of_Co
mmunal_Riots_Taking_Place_in_India

● https://www.gktoday.in/gk/communal-riots-in-india-
key-incidents-and-