Haryana communal clashes | A script catches fire

Taunts via videos gone viral on the social media. Counter-taunts by those picking up the gauntlet. Rumour, suspicion, word of mouth and buzzing message platforms blending into each other and raising temperatures all around. And the logical culmination: armed stormtroopers within a religious procession, a concerted attack by local vigilantes equipped with an array of munitions, widespread arson and retaliation. The events, spread out over two days in the vicinity of national capital New Delhi, brought life to a standstill in south Haryana, along with neighbouring districts in eastern Rajasthan and western Uttar Pradesh.