Gujarat -2002

by Rooma Mehra

The stench

from

burning flesh

rises

like smoke

from the cremation

of a

smiling child.

Blood

from dripping

knives

carve wounds

on the

weeping roads

of my country.

At the end

of this tunnel

the Buddha

smiles..

But who will

end

the tunnel?

Worms

eating tunnels

into

gullible minds

Words

eating tunnels

into

gullible minds

Who will

will fill

the tunnel

with the

smile

of Buddha

burnt

in the cremation

of a