MEERUT: While the BJP has slammed the Vishnu Sahai Commission, which has reportedly blamed the Muzaffarnagar communal riots of 2013 on politicians and the local administration, riot victims have hailed the reported findings of the commission and said the panel was right in indicting politicians.

Saleem Shahpur was headed to his home in Kakra village on September 7, 2013 when he saw a rally with thousands of armed people. "It was a terrifying sight. A procession of thousands of people was headed from Muzaffarnagar to Budhana via Mansoorpur Road. Most of them were armed with countrymade weapons, but many had automatic weapons. A former pradhan of my village was also present in the rally, along with local politicians. I decided to hurry home. All I could think of was the safety of my wife and two sons," he said.

While the findings of the report have not been made public, Shahpur said, "I read that the report blamed the riots on politicians. I agree with it. There was a clear political character to that procession, after which there was an incident of stoning of a mosque where a young boy died. When I reached home, the night was tense. Nobody left their house and it was eerily quiet. On the morning of September 8, we decided to leave the village for good. Our fellow villagers were spared the carnage that other villages like Phugana had to witness. They destroyed our houses after we had left but I am glad that my family is safe." Around 5,000 people had been rendered homeless after the communal riots in August and September 2013.

Shahpur said the report was also right in concluding that the local administration did not do enough to control the riots. "If the police had dispersed the crowd during the rally, the carnage could have been avoided. The district administration is also to blame."

Another riot victim, on condition of anonymity, said, "There was a panchayat meeting near Kawal village, which was the flashpoint of the riots. This was at the beginning, when the clashes were in the initial stages. I saw at least three major BJP leaders, including Sardhana MLA Sangeet Som, at the panchayat. They were delivering inflammatory speeches. Shortly after that meeting, mobs used to do the rounds of our villages and shout terrifying slogans about wiping out our entire community. The report is right in claiming politicians were behind the riots."

Shahpur added that one of the main reasons why the riots spread through five districts was inflammatory videos being circulated through WhatsApp. People from the other community, who we had lived peacefully with, used be huddled around mobile phones and would grow quiet when we approached. Those messages were being circulated at the behest of politicians."