The Anatomy of Hate
Author: Revati Laul
Reviewed by: Rahul Jayaram
Available at: Kindle Edition, 222 pages Published December 10th 2018 by Context. https://www.amazon.in/
Review:
Gujarat 2002: This book makes an attempt to understand the mobster, the rioter, the rapist (Mar 16, 2019, Scroll.in)
Revati Laul’s The Anatomy of Hate provides a detailed picture of an extremely important but so far under presented view about the Gujarat violence of 2002: that of some of its sympathisers, supporters and perpetrators.
In essence, this work of long-form nonfiction digs deep into the lives of Suresh “Langdo” Jadeja, a man convicted of rape and murder; Dungar, a Bhil tribesman who supported the riots and joined the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and the Bharatiya Janata Party and, later, the Indian National Congress to become an influential politician in his area; and Pranav, a one-time VHP sympathiser and non-governmental organisation volunteer and professional whose life and thinking were turned over when he began working with riot-affected Muslims.
There are a number of relevant minor individuals who are part of Laul’s investigation. Suresh Jadeja’s ex-wife, Farzana, is one of them. But her life story is so unsettling that she organically becomes a major part of the book. She is the Hindu Suresh’s Muslim wife.…
