We weren’t sure whether we’d reach home safely. To come to work too wasn’t certain. They shot and hijacked vehicles. There were checkpoints everywhere. They’d check what’s in the cars. Even on the way to Kattankudy, they would check us.

Those days, when they came across each other, Tamils would attack Muslims. And Muslims would attack Tamils.  There were abductions and killings. We couldn’t go outside. We couldn’t go anywhere. We couldn’t go to Paduvanthurai.

It happened during the evening prayers, around 6pm. It happened at two mosques in Kattankudy. One was the Meera Jummah mosque and the other was the Hussainiya mosque. The shooting took place in these two mosques at the same time. It was so sad when I returned home seeing that. People were crying after seeing those things. People who survived the shooting were still in the mosque. They couldn’t come out. What could we do?

It was dark. There were no lights. No electricity. It went on like that. I came out from the mosque when the shooting stopped. I stood up and when I heard there wasn’t any firing, I went home.

The others at home were worried, crying, and thinkin about their children, their uncles and others who went to the mosque. Within an hour we knew who had died and who had survived.  Those we survived just went home. Those who died were taken from the mosque directly to their funerals.

One hundred and one people died. You can see their names written in front of the mosque. At the Meera mosque. But not the Hussainia mosque. The names are written there. 

I was very frightened. They were shooting in the mosque. But I managed to escape.

As they were shooting, I managed to escape.

All of our elders, all those who supported us are gone. My uncles, grand uncles, cousins, and others all died. 

Now the people have forgotten, no? Now both communities are living together happily. There is no violence or any bitterness. He comes to my house. I can go to his home. We talk. We can go anywhere. Do anything. There’s nothing now. We are now living without any trouble. There are no arguments.