Sanjeeda Beghum (33) finally gathered the courage to step out of a relief camp and returned to her Shiv Vihar residence on Friday morning only to find it in a shambles. Her jewellery and television set had been looted.
Shabana (35), who was at Idgah ground relief camp, said she was still scared to return home. She lived in a rented accommodation. She said her husband told her that they could not return home as the “situation was still not normal”.
RAF officials have been manning the streets leading to Shiv Vihar, one of the areas in north-east Delhi which witnessed the worst incidents of violence. While the streets were initially empty, one can now spot people slowly trying to rebuild houses they had left behind over 10 days ago.
However, there is still a sense of fear and insecurity among the residents.
Outside a temple near gali number 7, a group of young men were heard talking about the recent riots . “ Hum kisi ko kuch nahi keh rahe hai. Jisko aana hai aaye, jisko nahi aana hai, na aaye. Lekin woh kuch kahenge toh fir pitenge [We are not saying anything to anyone. Whoever wants to come can come. Who doesn’t want to come, should not come. But if they speak up, we will thrash them again],” said a man who appeared to be in his early 20s and said he lived inside the temple. “ Unhe bhi to pata lage ke Hindu bhi kuch hain [They should realise that the Hindus are powerful],” said another.
Sanjeeda, another resident of the area, said she had fled on February 25. Though the family had returned to the house, the members were not sure if they should stay there at night.
“We came here at 7 a.m. and found that the mob which entered the house did not set it on fire, but stole the TV set, gold jewellery and other valuables. They even took the vegetables that we had stocked in the house before the riots,” she said.
Ms. Sanjeeda said that her two brothers-in-law had come to check on their house a few days ago but one of them was caught by a mob and beaten up. “Initially, right after the riots, it was risky. But now the situation has improved. Our immediate neighbours are Hindus and they saved my brother-in-law from the mob,” she said, adding that she could gather the courage to return because a lot of others were also coming back. “It rained last night. For how long could we have stayed in camps or at relatives’ houses?”
Jamaluddin Mansuri was spotted outside his burnt and looted residence in gali number 20 where BSES officials were working to restore electricity. Mr. Mansuri recalled how he and his three sons were attacked by a mob on February 27 when they had come to check on the house. “A group of 20-25 people caught hold of us and started thrashing us. They did not want us to return. They pushed a rod inside my son’s foot. Eventually, a police van arrived and they fled,” said Mr. Mansuri who also had a bandage on his left foot.
Yasmeen (50) has been staying at her house only during the day for the last three days. She does not feel safe at night and therefore leaves for her brother’s house. “We built this three-storey house a year-and-a-half ago. I had taken loans from my siblings and I am still in debt,” she said, standing outside the house which was reduced to ashes.
Other locals, including Raziya and Habib-Ur-Rehman, who live in rented accommodations and had come to check on their houses, said they would eventually return but were scared at the moment.
