For the family of young bride-to-be Jyoti Narbheran the rioting was a terrifying end to what should have been a party of celebration.

The family had arranged a party to mark the engagement of Jyoti to her fiance Gareth Williams. Family members and friends - both Hindu and white - had travelled from as far afield as Leicester and London for the happy event.

But the party never really got going. It was crudely interrupted at 8pm when youths began smashing the windows of the function suite with stones.

The 100-odd guests - including children - were forced to huddle together on the dance floor, the part of the room furthest away from the exploding windows.

When, eventually, it was safe for them to venture outside, a number of them found that their cars - including a Mercedes, a Rover and an Audi - had been torched and looted.

Beena Jotangia, from Bradford, who is Jyoti's sister, said: "We had to suffer the pain of our younger cousins being upset, and our elder members of the family having their cars destroyed and not being able to get home. This has been quite a traumatic incident for my family."

Gita Chudasama, from Bradford, Jyoti's aunt, said: "I don't think our relatives will ever want to come to Bradford again. It was embarrassing for us, and people have all gone away with this impression of Bradford being like a war-torn country. My brother put a lot of effort into organising the party and he ended up having to apologise to the family, although it wasn't his fault."

Opinion