An uneasy calm is spreading over India's Gujarat state, after days of deadly Muslim-Hindu violence that has left more than 550 people dead. Schools remained closed and curfews remained in place in many towns Monday. But shops re-opened and traffic jams returned to the state capital, Ahmadabad, as workers removed wrecked vehicles and burned debris from city streets.

Early today, in the northern Gujarat town of Danta, the Associated Press said police fired weapons at a crowd of about 100 people trying to set fire to Muslim homes. Two rioters were reported killed.

The six-day death toll includes 58 Hindu activists whose deaths sparked India's worst religious-based killing rampage in a decade. The activists died aboard a train set on fire by Muslim militants.

In response, Hindu mobs set fire to Muslim homes and businesses across much of the state. Some of the attacks wiped out entire families. Most of the victims are Muslims, who are a majority in the state.

The Hindus aboard the train were returning from the town of Ayodha, in northern Uttar Pradesh state - where Hindu activists plan to erect a temple on the site of a mosque that they destroyed 10 years ago. The World Hindu Council says it intends to begin construction on March 15, on land still claimed by Muslims.

Some information for this report provided by AFP and AP.

Email this article to a friend
Printer Friendly Version