The Production of Hindu-Muslim Violence in Contemporary
India. By Paul R. Brass. Seattle: University of Washington Press,
2003. 448p. $50.00 cloth, $35.00 paper.
Rioting in South Asia is commonly understood as a form of political
activity, and the idea that it may not be spontaneous but planned is not a
novel one. However, in The Production of Hindu Muslim Violence in
Contemporary India, Paul Brass makes the more interesting claim that
riot-prone cities are those that are marked by institutionalized systems
that create, control, and direct the course of riots. He bases these
ideas—developed in his earlier work Theft of an
Idol—on four decades of research carried out in the northern
Indian town of Aligarh, home to a sizable and historic Muslim community.
Brass argues that polarizing issues or incidents by themselves do not lead
to riots, but that a toxic mix of interested politicians, an existing
discourse of communalism, an ineffective administration, and a specialized
network that “produces” riots enhances the likelihood that
such incidents will eventuate in riots. In describing this social
construction of rioting, Brass highlights interesting features, such as
the need for a group to dominate the narrative describing the riot, which
establishes it as a defensive rather than offensive measure, thereby
creating legitimacy for the violence.