Fall of Old Hyderabad: Recent Communal Riots and The Larger Picture

In a very well-written piece in its April 24, 2010 issue, an EPW Correspondent critically analyses the reasons behind the recent communal riots in Old City, Hyderabad. He blames the secular parties for abandoning the areas that has given a communal colour to the politics led by the local Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen or the Majlis Party that has led to revival of Hindu communalism as well. He documents the history and the reasons for the rise in the communal temper of the city over the years. The article analyses how the city known “ganga-jamni tehzeeb” (cosmopolitan culture) has lost its sheen with time and cites specific instances of how communal riots were exploited by mainstream parties for political gains. The article explains the rise of the Majlis Party because of the reluctance on the part of the secular parties to counter them. The article laments the fact that “far from making any attempt to bring about visible changes, it appears as if the Congress and its government have left the political space of the Old City to the Majlis.”

The article also puts the blame of the rapid communalization on the long-lasting administrative neglect of the Old City. The Old City was the seat of power and government for centuries until the administrative shift began a history of neglect of the region. The shift started in 1930s with the Nizam moving to the new city and continued after independence and accelerated with the formation of Andhra Pradesh in 1956 that led to migration of Telugu-speaking people to Hyderabad who were culturally different from their Urdu-speaking counterparts and “the alienation was complete, as the new democratically elected rulers after 1956, thought that the way of governing the Old City was to follow a policy of benign neglect at best and one of active deprivation at worst.”

The resultant poor governance levels, severe neglect of basic and higher education, shift of political locus and rise of anti-social elements have culminated led to the fall of the Old City where ‘no respect for rule of law’ is left. The correspondent sums up the state of affairs in the Old City at the present - “For all practical purposes, the decaying Old City has been left to rot and deteriorate, completing the process of ghettoisation – a fertile ground for any trouble, communal or otherwise. All it requires is a spark, or a flag as recent events show.”