The Day in Question

Around 7am on February 27^th 2002, a train departing from Ayodhya, India (carrying over 5,000 Hindu activists returning from the Babri mosque site) was allegedly set on fire by a group of Muslim extremists. A mob of about 2,000 set the Sabarmati Express on fire by throwing kerosene containers at the moving train close to the Godhra train station. The fire consumed 4 out of the 5 train compartments -- resulting in the death of over 60 people with many more injured. This vicious train attack was the climax of the growing tension between Muslim and Hindus in Gujarat since the destruction of the Babri mosque in 1992. The train attack (as well as the atrocious events which occurred in its immediate aftermath) was a direct result of the government’s failure to alleviate tensions between the two religious groups.