The Anatomy of an Attack and Inspirations of Attackers

Abstract

Chapter 6 explores the dynamics of this form of collective action, which might be best characterized as the violence of offence-taking, along with exploring the role and motivations of individuals at the forefront of these attacks—to bring out the inconsistencies of what is otherwise passed off as an all-encompassing chronicle of communal and ethno-religious tensions or as party politics. The chapter presents narratives of three attackers with special emphasis on the micro-political make-up of this violence, underlined by a common thread—namely, the search for glory, recognition, and dignity through the interiorization and creative appropriation of a cult of the hero and role model. Reiterating the central argument of the book, the language of the Indian Constitution—assuring its citizens dignity, respect, and equality—emerges here as an enabling technique for attackers to indulge their violent rage, taking on a particularly perverse form in a state that already suffers from weak enforcement of the law.