Gujarat city elects Muslim mayor

Gujarat city elects Muslim mayor

Muslims bore the brunt of of the riots

A Muslim woman has been elected as the mayor of Ahmedabad in the Indian state of Gujarat.

The new mayor, Aneesa Mirza, is a senior member of the Congress Party.

She becomes the first Muslim mayor of Ahmedabad, which was the scene of devastating Hindu-Muslim riots last year.

More than 1,000 people, mainly Muslim, died in the violence in Gujarat. Independent accounts put the figure at close to 2,000.

Ms Mirza defeated Bharti Patel, a candidate of India's governing Bharatiya Janata Party, which is in power in Gujarat.

Members of the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation elect the mayor.

Surprise choice

The BBC's Rajeev Khanna in Ahmedabad says Ms Mirza's election came as a surprise as she was not the front-runner for the post, which had been reserved for a woman candidate.

My election will definitely build confidence amongst the people

Mayor Aneesa Mirza

The Congress has a majority in the corporation but despite this our correspondent says the choice of a minority candidate surprised everyone.

"We wanted to give a committed and educated candidate to the people who is also secular in outlook," a spokesman for the Congress Party in Ahmedabad, Hasmukh Patel, told the BBC.

Aneesa Mirza said that her priority would be to work for communal harmony in the city.

"My election will definitely build confidence amongst the people - both the Hindus and Muslims," she said.

Secular signal

Observers believe that by fielding a Muslim candidate the Congress wants to send a signal to the Muslim community that the party stands for secular values.

Ms Mirza is one of the most senior leaders in the Congress but had not been given any major responsibility until now.

The 60-year-old holds a masters degree in both English and History.

She began her political career during the 1969 Hindu-Muslim riots.