Siyaset, Toplum ve Şiddet: 2002 Gujarat Olaylarında Hindistan Polisinin Rolü Üzerine Bir İnceleme

2019’da Hindistan’da yapılan genel seçimlerde aşırı sağcı ve Hintli milliyetçi Narendra Modi yeniden Başbakan seçilmeyi başardı. Modi, iktidarı süresince ve seçim esnasında kullandığı İslam karşıtı söylem nedeniyle eleştirilmiştir. Dahası, onun bu Müslüman karşıtı tutumunun Hint toplumunu böleceğine dair endişeler var. Modi’nin siyasi geçmişi göz önüne alındığında, bu endişelerin meşru bir dayanağı olduğu görülür. Bağımsız raporlara göre Modi ve BJP partisinin 2002 yılında Hindistan’ın Gujarat eyaletinde meydana gelen şiddet olaylarında aktif olduğuna dair kanıtlar mevcuttur. İsyan 2002 yılında Hindu hacıları taşıyan bir trenin yanmasıyla başlamıştı. Olayın ardından Müslümanlara yönelik şiddet bir yıl sürdü ve 1000’den fazla kişi hayatını kaybetti. Raporlara göre, polis memurları Müslümanlara yönelik saldırıları engellemedi ve hatta Hindu çetelerin silah bulması için yardım ettiler. Bu yazıda polisin rolü devlet, siyaset ve sivil toplum ilişkisi ekseninde tartışılacaktır. Gujarat isyanının bir vaka olarak seçilmesinin temel nedeni, Modi’nin günümüzde Hindistan geneline yayılan dışlama politikalarının o dönemde bölgesel düzeyde deneyimlenmiş olmasıdır. Üstelik bu süreçte, polisin Gujarat şiddetinde ayrımcı tutumu, Modi ve partisi tarafından desteklenmiştir. Bu nedenle isyanlarda polisin rolünü incelemek önem kazanmaktadır. Belgeleme yöntemiyle toplanan veriler, Rainer’in polislik teorisinde tartışılacaktır. Rainer’e göre polisin tacizinin dört ana nedeni vardır: Tarafgirlik, önyargı, farklılaşma ve ayrımcılık. Buna ek olarak, Hindistan polisinin siyasallaşması, hükümet ve polis tacizi arasındaki örtük ilişkiyi anlamak için incelenecektir. Sonuç olarak polis teşkilatının ideolojik, dini ve etnik yönden motive edildiğinde toplumun belirli kesimlerini dışlayarak hareket ettiği tespit edilmiştir.

Politics, Society and Violence: The Role of the Indian Police in the 2002 Gujarat Riots

In the general elections held in India in 2019, the far-right Indian nationalist Narendra Modi managed to be re-elected as Prime Minister. Modi has been criticized for the anti-Islamic discourse he used during his rule and election process. Moreover, there are concerns that the anti-Muslim attitude will divide Indian society. There are justifications for these concerns, given Modi’s political background. Modi and his BJP party are believed to be active in the violence that took place in the state of Gujarat in India in 2002. During the riots, more than 1,000 people lost their lives. According to reports, police officers did not stop attacks against Muslims and they helped Hindu mobs find lethal weapons. In this article, the role of the police will be discussed within the axis of the relationship between the state, politics and civil society. The main reason why the Gujarat riots were chosen as a case study is that the exclusionary policies of Modi across India were experienced at the regional level in 2002. Furthermore, the discriminatory action of police in the violence of the Gujarat riots was supported by Modi and his party. Therefore, it becomes important to examine the role of the police in these riots. The data, which was collected through the documentation method, will be discussed in relation to Rainer’s policing theory. According to Rainer there are four main reasons for police abuse, which are: prejudice, bias, differentiation and discrimination. In addition, the politicization of Indian police will be examined to understand the implicit relationship between government and police abuse. As a result, it has been determined that when motivated ideologically, religiously and ethnically, the police organization acts by excluding certain segments of the society.

Keywords:

India, Gujarat, violence, nationalism Policing theories,

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