CRSV: Hyderabad Massacres (1948)

This case note documents the occurrence of sexual violence in violent conflict. It contains explicit mentions of different forms of sexual assault. Reader discretion is advised.

Background of the Conflict

The Hyderabad massacres is a term given to the mass killing and massacre of Hyderabadi Muslims and Dalits, which took place alongside the annexation of Hyderabad by India, in Operation Poli, between September and October 1948 (Purushoham, 2021; Shaji, 2023). Following the partition and independence of India and Pakistan, tensions were high, and colonial policies of divide and rule were fomented by the partition. On ground, this manifested in the form of targeted violence aimed at Muslims and Dalits by the Indian army and radical Hindu militias, resulting in the death of at least 200,000 people (Noorani, 2014). Muslims and Dalits were targeted with sexual violence and rape, torture, and pillage (Sundarayya, 1972).

Prevalence of Sexual Violence

Sexual violence and rape were common and rampant, targeting Muslim and Dalit women alike (Gulbargavi, 2022). During the communal onslaught, many women were deliberately targeted, while their properties were seized and/or destroyed. With the backing of the army and police, the deliberate targeting of Muslim and Dalit communities in Hyderabad was aimed at driving these individuals out altogether.

Basis of the Use of Sexual Violence

Sexual and gender-based violence were used as a form of intimidation to cause humiliation to the extent that whole communities would be driven out. In some instances, rape was also carried out opportunistically, and in some instances, as a form of torture and cruel treatment. In the larger scheme of things, it was one of the methods used to perpetrate the largescale massacre and ethnic erasure. The roots of the communal conflict go to colonialism, where British colonial rule fomented divisions on religious lines as part of its campaign to pursue an active policy of divide and rule.

References

Gulbargavi, T. H. (2022). "1948 Hyderabad Massacre: A Timeline". The Cognate.

Noorani, A. G. (2014). The Destruction of Hyderabad. New Delhi: Tulika Books.

Purushotham, S. (2021). From Raj to Republic: Sovereignty, Violence, and Democracy in India. Stanford University Press.

Shaji, P. M. S. (2023). "Minority alliances, Police Action, and the troubled past of Dalit Razakars in Hyderabad". The News Minute. https://www.thenewsminute.com/telangana/minority-alliances-police-action-and-the-troubled-past-of-dalit-razakars-in-hyderabad

Sundarayya, P. (1972). Telangana People's Struggle and Its Lessons. Foundation Books.