On February 27, 2002, the Sabarmati Express passenger train was attacked at Godhra, a town in the Indian state of Gujarat. A total of 59 people were burned alive in the carnage. Almost all of them were Hindus, many returning after performing religious services at Ayodhya. The rioting that followed after the burning was virtually unprecedented in India. Neither the state machinery nor the ruling party headed by Chief Minister Narendra Modi attempted to control the violence. With few exceptions, even the administrative apparatus seemed to remain indifferent. At the same time, the media largely interpreted the violence in a standard fashion as a product of secular and communal rivalries (Engineer, 2003)