1964 Calcutta riots

The 1964 Calcutta riot was a religious riot that occurred in January 1964 and spread throughout the city of Calcutta. The violence primarily targeted the Muslims and was perpetrated by members of the Hindu community. This event was the first intense religious violence in the city since the 1946 riots.[5][6][7]

1964 Calcutta riots
Part of Religious violence in India
DateJanuary 1964
Location
Calcutta (presently known as Kolkata)
GoalsCommunal violence against Muslims
Casualties
Death(s)Official: 264 (mostly Muslims)[1][2][3][4]
  • 208 due to communal violence
  • 56 due to police and military action

Unofficial estimates: 100-500[5][2]
Injuries430+
Arrested7000+

The violence included attacks resulting in bloodshed, property destruction, and organized looting, which led to the death of at least 264 people, according to official records. Unofficial estimates of casualties ranged from 100 to 500. The aftermath of the riot left the Muslim community in Calcutta feeling more segregated and fearful than ever before. Reports indicated that as many as 70,000 Muslim residents fled their homes.[8]

Background

The violence in Calcutta began to develop on December 27, 1963, when a sacred relic believed by many to be a strand from the beard of Islamic Prophet Muhammad was stolen from the Hazratbal Shrine in Jammu and Kashmir. This incident sparked protests and mass agitation, which fueled hatred towards the minority Hindu community in East Pakistan (present-day Bangladesh) and eventually led to a violent riot in the border districts of Khulna and Jessore, resulting in the deaths of 29 Hindus.

Despite strict international border controls, several hundred Hindu refugees crossed into the adjacent Hindu-majority Indian state of West Bengal due to the harsh conditions of the riot. As they moved towards Calcutta, approximately 30 miles from the frontier, they spread stories and rumors of atrocities in Khulna and Jessore, which incited retaliation against Muslims in rural areas of West Bengal. By the evening of January 9, 1964, the impoverished slums on the eastern outskirts of Calcutta began to stir.[9]

Timeline

References
  1. Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India (11 February 1964). "Communal Disturbances in West Bengal: Shri G. L. Nanda's Statement in Parliament" (PDF). PIB Archive. p. 3. 6015.
  2. "Widespread Communal Riots in India and Pakistan" (PDF). Keesing's Contemporary Archives. 25 July 1964. p. 1.
  3. Huda, Kashif ul (23 May 2009). "Communal Riots and Jamshedpur". Economic and Political Weekly.
  4. "Recurrent Exodus of Minorities from East Pakistan and Disturbances in India" (PDF). International Commission of Jurists. 20 January 1965. p. 307.
  5. "1964: Riots in Calcutta leave more than 100 dead". BBC. 13 January 1964. Retrieved 11 January 2023.
  6. "TOLL IN CALCUTTA PUT AT 60 IN RIOTS; Mob Kills 3 Policemen —Army Units Moved In". The New York Times. 12 January 1964. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 11 January 2023.
  7. "ANNEX II (7) Survey on Hindu Muslim Riots (1917 to 1977) | Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying". dahd.nic.in. Retrieved 11 January 2023.
  8. Sengupta, Anwesha. "Calcutta's Muslims after Partition". The Daily Star. Retrieved 12 January 2023. more than 70,000 Calcutta hindus fled their homes during these riots
  9. "News Analysis; Root of Calcutta's Riots; Behind Violence in the Name of Religion Are Pressures of Underfed Proletariat". The New York Times. 14 January 1964. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 1 February 2023.
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