Approaching Elections Bring Uptick in India’s Communal Violence

Approaching Elections Bring Uptick in India’s Communal Violence

In India, violent clashes between Hindus and Muslims over the weekend reportedly killed at least 30 people.

Officials say the riots in the northern Indian province of Uttar Pradesh were a reaction to a video clip allegedly showing the lynching of two young people.

“India is one of the most religiously diverse countries in the world, so it's always had difficulty in keeping the peace between its various religious groups,” Ajay Verghese, assistant professor of politics at the University of South Florida St. Petersburg, wrote Trend Lines in an email interview. “But what happened in Uttar Pradesh really fits the contemporary pattern of violence: Usually it starts with a rumor of some kind, different religious communities become inflamed, and eventually violence breaks out during a demonstration or protest or gathering. These things happen all over the country, and it usually follows this same format.”

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