MANISH GUPTA
Ranchi, Aug 31: Jharkhand witnessed the highest number of communal riots in India in 2021, according to the recently released National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report for the year.
The tribal state saw 100 cases of communal rioting last year, which accounts for 26 per cent of the total cases in India. The second highest number of religious riots at 77 was seen in Maharashtra. The total figure for the country is 378 cases.
As per Census 2011, the population of Jharkhand is 3.30 crore. The population of Hindus in the state is 67.83%, Muslims 14.53%, Christian 4.30% and other religions 12.84%. The corresponding figures for India are 79.80%, 14.23%, 2.30% and 0.66%.
Even as Jharkhand was the most vulnerable state in terms of religious clashes in 2021, the state continued to see communal riots in the current year as well.
The most violent was the one on June 10 when Muslims came out in large numbers against disrespectful comments on their religious figure resulting in two deaths and 24 people getting severely injured.
