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Cover-Up: Gujarat riot victim Zaheera Sheikh claims she was pressured to change her testimony about the violence

Hate Thy Neighbor
	Muslims feel the heat as India leans towards Hindu nationalism
	By Alex Perry Bombay

Posted Monday, August 4, 2003; 21:00 HKT
India has always prided itself on its secularism. But with the rise of a Hindu-chauvinist movement, animosity toward the country's 150 million Muslim minority has intensified. As a result, many Muslims feel more insecure than ever. Their key grievances include:

GUJARAT In retaliation for a Muslim attack on a train carrying Hindu pilgrims in February last year, Hindu mobs embarked on an orgy of murder, rape and arson against Gujarati Muslims, killing as many as 2,000

AYODYHA In 1992 Hindu mobs destroyed a 16th century mosque in Ayodhya claimed by right-wing Hindu nationalists to have been built on the site of a temple that marked the birthplace of the deity Rama. Nationwide riots ensued as Muslims protested; nearly 1,800 people were killed in Bombay alone. Then, in March 1993, the Muslim underworld detonated a series of bombs across Bombay, killing nearly 300 people. Hindus want to rebuild a temple on the disputed site, but preliminary archaeological findings have shown no sign of a previous temple there

JOB DISCRIMINATION Although the constitution recognizes the right to equal opportunities, many Hindu-run companies don't hire qualified Muslims. Likewise, the government hires a disproportionate number of Hindus, exacerbating Muslims' sense that they are economically oppressed

SCAPEGOATING Indian Muslims are often regarded as a potential fifth column for the country's archenemy Pakistan. Accusations of collusion with Islamabad surface each time terrorists launch attacks on Indian soil

	Asian Heroes: The Good Women of Gujarat [April 24, 2003] A sisterhood nurses the wounds of a battered state Modi's Law [December 9, 2002] For India, Narendra Modi's election bid is a referendum on the politics of hate Walking Scared in India [August 5, 2002] Going home is hard for Gujarat's scarred and terrorized Muslim population India's Own Beirut [May 10, 2002] Gujarat's bloodletting and ethnic hatred are sundering forever the troubled state More Related Items | Search all issues of TIME Magazine