The outsiders

Thousands of migrants have fled north Gujarat’s industrial areas following violence triggered by the rape of a 14-year-old in Sabarkantha district. The situation has, however, cooled off a bit, with State government functionaries engaging in “confidence building” steps. Even so, according to industry estimates, output is likely to be down 15-20 per cent in the run-up to Diwali. The industries affected are auto-ancillaries, pharma, ceramics, cotton ginning, fertilisers and chemicals and construction, in regions around Sanand, Sabarkantha, Patan and Aravali. Over 400 people have been rounded up for inciting trouble, and Congress leader Alpesh Thakor is under the scanner. If Gujarat has emerged as India’s premier industrial State since Independence, one of the reasons is the existence of a social compact, meant to ensure some peace and stability for the conduct of business. This has been disrupted in recent years. Mob lynchings, such as the public flogging of Dalits in Una in 2016 over the cow slaughter issue, seemed to point to a breakdown of rule of law, which was underscored in the recent episode of violence against north Indian migrants. No industrial economy, more so Gujarat which depends heavily on migrant workers, can thrive in an atmosphere of fear and insecurity. The episode is a throwback to the flight of north-easterners from Bengaluru in 2012, on malicious social media threats. While rumour mills in the social media played an equally damaging role in Gujarat this time, the messenger is not wholly to blame.

The fact is that in recent years, chauvinistic and sectarian elements have sought to rule both the streets and our minds. Having secured a foothold in institutions of governance, the mob threatens to undermine a basic tenet of a modern state, namely, that all individuals are bestowed with equal rights and responsibilities in the eyes of law. It is disturbing that both in the case of Gujarat and Karnataka six years ago the state and its machinery allowed the rabble to take over before they stepped in. What makes matters worse is that the migrants lack political agency vis-a-vis the local government machinery. A vitiated political climate can inflict grave damage on India’s image as a liberal, democratic nation. It is disturbing that enraged groups everywhere, in Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat or Kerala, feel emboldened to disregard the Supreme Court’s observations condemning mob violence. The ‘othering’ of communities along religion, caste and ethnic lines must stop, before it translates into a downward socio-economic spiral.

Gujarat has been a high-growth State, but there’s a mismatch between its economic and social indices. With the benefits of high agriculture growth tapering off, the State’s industry is faced with the challenge of absorbing a growing number of discontented farmers who lack the skills to enter the industrial workforce. This forms the larger backdrop for the prevailing unrest.

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