Thursday, May 01, 2008

Shia-Sunni clash in Lucknow

Once again Lucknow witnessed a Shia-Sunni clash on Tuesday. Though over a dozen persons were injured, the violence didn't spread and was effectively controlled.

It was the same area of Walled City: Husainabad, that again witnessed the groups of Shia and Sunni youths indulging in stone pelting and rioting.

The trouble started over a petty argument over rickshaw fare and as those quarrelling belonged to different sects, it led to tension and soon supporters of both the sides came to streets.

Though Lucknow has a long history of such sectarian conflict, it was felt that old days of Shia-Sunni tension are a thing of past. Specially after the ban on Azadari and the Madah-e-Sahaba procession was lifted, it was believed that the things would get normal. However many such clashes have occurred in Old City in the last couple of years.

Lucknow is known to be a City that doesn't have a Hindu-Muslim friction, rather it is Shia-Sunni schism that this place is notorious for. Though the scale of violence was not much on this occasio and police controlled the situation well, such incidents that keep occurring at regular intervals keep the tensions alive and the mistrust among both sects continues in the City.