Christmas mass passes off peacefully in Kandhamal

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Bhubaneswar (IANS): Midnight Christmas mass was attended by thousands of Christians amid tight security across Orissa, including Kandhamal district that had witnessed widespread anti-Christian violence earlier this year. In many places Hindus joined Christians in the celebrations, officials said Thursday.
"We have not received information of any trouble. It seems to be all peaceful," the Archbishop of Cuttack and Bhubaneswar Raphael Cheenath told IANS.
"We held the Christmas mass with prayer and singing," Cheenath said, adding that he is satisfied with the security arrangements made by the government.
"We are confident the Christmas celebrations will also pass off peacefully in the state," Cheenath said.
Midnight mass was held peacefully in Kandhamal amid heavy security cover.
Officials said except for the felling of two trees on the road in two places early Thursday no untoward incident was reported. The trees were promptly removed by security forces.
"There has been no problem so far," Kandhamal district collector Krishan Kumar told IANS by phone.
About 8,000 people still living in government-run relief camps in the district also attended the Christmas mass and decorated their camps, officials said.
Kandhamal district, about 200 km from here, witnessed widespread anti-Christian violence after the murder of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati and four of his aides Aug 23. At least 38 people were killed in the state and thousands of Christians forced to flee their homes after their houses were attacked by mobs. Extremist Hindu groups charged Christians with the murders, a charge repeatedly denied by Christian groups.

Trouble makers at Kandhamal identified

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PHULBANI, Dec. 11: The Kandhamal district authorities today said it had identified trouble makers in the district ~ 500 of them. Some of them have been arrested and a few more will soon be booked under the National Security Act."Police patrolling and deployment will be enhanced from 20 December in view of the Christmas celebrations," said district collector Mr Krishan Kumar.

At least 600 fake certificate cases had been registered and 225 of these cases have been disposed till date. Director, Orissa Watershed Development Mission Mr T Bhaskar Reddy and director, horticulture Mr JD Sharma informed reporters here about the new watershed scheme Jeebika. The scheme, intends to involve about 40,000 families of the district over the next three years. "An outlay of Rs 80 crore has been made," informed Dr Reddy.Talking about the land dispute redressal work, the district collector said that he has been empowered to take suo-motto cognizance of the cases, wherein tribal lands have been transferred in the name of SC people by the last settlement of 1976 and bring the matter to the notice of special administrator Mr MS Padhee.

This apart, the allegation that tribal lands have been purchased without prior approval of concerned authority as per Regulation-II of 1956, are inquired into. "So far, 234 cases in this connection have been registered and in 175 cases, tribal lands have been returned to the original owners. The revision of cases is also made on a priority basis," said Mr Kumar.With regards to tribals, who have encroached forest land prior to 2004, Mr Kumar said: "As per existing provisions the tribal family will get a maximum of 10 acres of land, so far, 62 such families have been identified." The district collector also referred to the special package for the district which involved setting up of a BEd college, a mega nursery for horticulture and two training institutes. n sns

BJP performs poorly in Kandhamal civic polls

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Kalinga Times Correspondent
Phulbani, Dec 3: Bharatiya Janata Party has failed to show its strength in the polls held to the Phulbani Municipality and G. Udaygiri Notified Area Council.

When the results of the polls to the two urban bodies were announced on Wednesday, BJP emerged third among the three major parties. The polls were conducted on Tuesday amid tight security.

In Phulbani municipality, BJP bagged only two seats out of the total 13. Opposition Congress won the maximum number of five seats, while BJD got 4 and Independents won in two wards.

Congress also won in maximum number of wards in G. Udaygiri NAC. It won in six out of the total 13 wards. BJD took the second position with four seats and BJP got just one. Independents won in the remaining two wards.

In both the civic bodies, BJD and BJP had entered into a pre-poll alliance. While BJD had contested in seven seats each at both places, BJP had fielded its nominees in six wards each. But the two parties together failed to secure majority in both civic bodies.

However, which party or parties will form councils in Phulbani and G. Udaygiri will now depend on the decision of the Independents

Fissures in BJP-BJD alliance over Kandhamal

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Special Correspondent

BHUBANESWAR: Cracks appeared in the ruling Biju Janata Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party alliance in Orissa over the Kandhamal issue with the BJP boycotting the BJD-BJP joint legislature party meeting on Tuesday.

The BJP legislators did not refrain from attending the joint legislature party meet as their party was not happy with the measures taken by the State government to deal with the Kandhamal situation.

Industry Minister and Leader of the BJP Legislature Party Biswabhushan Harichandan told presspersons that their legislators did not attend the joint meeting because the government had failed to arrest the killers of Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader Lakshmanananda Saraswati. Only three persons have been arrested for their involvement in the killing of the swami so far, but the remaining accused were still at large, Mr. Harichandan said. The BJP was also not happy with the manner in which the government was dealing with the issue of conversion in Kandhamal district, he added.

Strategy preparation

The joint legislature party had to meet to prepare the strategy to deal with the issues that would be raised by the Opposition parties in the winter session of the Assembly, scheduled to start on Wednesday.

The Kandhamal issue had rocked the Assembly in the last week of August with the BJP members demanding immediate arrest of the killers of the swami.

Pawar for ban on Christmas bandh

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Statesman News Service
BHUBANESWAR, Nov 19: Taking a serious view on the proposed Orissa bandh threat given by VHP, RSS and Laxamananda Smruti Samiti, the ministerial delegation headed by Mr Sharad Pawar told chief minister Mr Naveen Patnaik to "use his good offices" to see that it does not take place on a festive day and to ensure safety of life and property of people.
Mr Pawar’s note of caution to the CM assumes great significance in the backdrop of the fact that the Orissa bandh threat was issued at a rally and meeting held on 15 November in the presence of several ruling BJP ministers and leaders.
The home ministry had advised the state government not to permit the 15 November rally as it was lead to breach of peace but the state had assessed the situation and accorded permission.
Sensing trouble, Mr Pawar wondered why have a bandh on Christmas day, generally such agitation and bandhs are never held on festive days be it Christmas, Chat puja, Diwali or anywhere in the country.
If the bandh takes place on 25 December, it is the responsibility of the state government to protect life and property of all sections of people, said Mr Pawar.
Apparently embarrassed over the fact that some of his ministers were present at the rally when the threat was issued, chief minister Mr Naveen Patnaik said "there should not be a bandh on Christmas day". He also mentioned apprehension of breach of peace but did not say whether he would appeal to the Samiti and Sangh Parivar to desist from such action.
Talking to reporters Mr Pawar made several telling points on the situation in Kandhamal district. We are not mandated to comment on the performance of the state or its handling of the Kandhamal situation, we will submit out report to the PM, maintained Pawar but went on to observe that the situation in the trouble torn district was tense.
There is tension and fear in the minds of people belonging to both sections, he said referring to those who were in relief camps and those who had fled to jungles fearing police action.
The state government should involve all sections in the peace process, the image of the state and nation is at stake, he observed.
People need to return to villages, harvest their crop and development activity has to be stepped up, he said.

Orissa: Britain to put pressure on India

Hasan Suroor
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LONDON: Britain and other European Union countries are to put pressure on the Indian government to protect Christians in Orissa and to ensure that victims of recent violent attacks by right-wing Hindu groups are able to return to their homes.

A EU delegation will visit Orissa next month to study the situation and make recommendations. Orissa would also be on the agenda of the next India-EU human rights dialogue to be held soon.

This was stated by Lord Bach, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State Ministry of Justice, while speaking during a debate on Orissa in the House of Lords. He said the British government “unequivocally” condemned the incidents and urged New Delhi to uphold the right to freedom of religion.

However, Lord Bach rejected calls for an inquiry into the activities of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad in the U.K. on the ground that the organisation was not “proscribed” either in India or Britain.

“The U.K. government doos not consider the VHP to be a terrorist organisation under our law. The organisation is proscribed neither here nor in India, nor does the Indian government classify it as a terrorist organisation. Obviously, decisions on proscription must be proportionate and based on evidence that a group is involved in terrorism as defined in the Terrorism Act 2000,” he told a member who said the VHP, registered as a charity in Britain, had made a number of inflammatory statements.

Responding to members’ concern on the situation in Orissa, Lord Bach said: “The United Kingdom unequivocally condemns the recent violent attacks against Christians that have led to deaths, injuries and widespread displacements in Orissa. We have expressed our concerns to the appropriate Indian authorities in Delhi and London. The U.K. will continue to urge the Government of India to uphold the right to freedom of religion. Our High Commission in Delhi, along with European and other partners, continues to monitor the situation in Orissa.”

Politics and violence in Orissa

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Vishal Arora

Why have India’s tribal-majority districts witnessed the bloodiest anti-Christian attacks? The answer to this question indicates why at least 60 people were killed and more than 4,500 houses and churches destroyed in Kandhamal district of Orissa recently.

India saw its first large-scale attacks on the minority community in December 1998 in Gujarat’s Dangs district, where 93% of the population is tribal. In March 2004, anti-Christian violence broke out in Madhya Pradesh’s Jhabua district, where tribals constitute 85% of the population. Then followed the mayhem in December 2007, and again in August 2008 in Kandhamal, where nearly 52% of the population is tribal. These incidents took place during the rule of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) or its allies.

Photograph: Indranil Bhoumik / Mint

The BJP has made inroads into the tribal-majority pockets of central India, where roughly 75% of country’s tribal population lives. During its six-year tenure at the Centre, beginning 1998, the party implemented its Hindutva agenda in tribal regions. In 1999, it created a separate ministry of tribal affairs, which was part of the ministry of social welfare. Not surprisingly, the scheduled castes community, which is much bigger, was not given a separate ministry. The party also bifurcated the commission for scheduled castes and scheduled tribes and the national scheduled castes and scheduled tribes corporation by creating new panels for the tribal people.

The Sangh Parivar worked in tandem with the BJP to “Hinduize” tribals. For instance, the Ekal Vidyalaya (one-teacher school) Foundation was registered as a “charitable” trust in 1999. It is well known that these schools, that operate mainly in tribal areas, seek to “Hinduize” tribals and oppose conversions among them. The BJP government aided these schools. More recently, Sangh outfits made an overt attempt to “Hinduize” tribals through the Shabri Kumbh rally in Dangs in February 2006. Shabri, a character in the Ramayan and tribal devotee who offered berries to Rama, was made into a goddess of the tribal population there.

Tribals form only around 9% of India’s population, but their votes are crucial. This is why BJP leader L.K. Advani launched his Sankalp Yatra from the tribal district of Jabalpur in February with an eye on the forthcoming elections in Madhya Pradesh. Later, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh laid the foundation stone of a new rail line in Jhabua, another tribal district in the state.

However, wooing tribals has not been easy for the BJP, which faces not only the Congress as an opponent, but also Christian missionaries. Christian agencies have been working in tribal areas for much longer. Due to their good development record and social acceptance—evident in the fact that a portion of the tribal population today is Christian—the BJP finds it difficult to compete with them and undermine their influence. Therefore, the BJP and other Sangh organizations launch hate campaigns and attacks on Christians under various pretexts, including that of “forced” conversions.

Tribals form only around 9% of India’s population, but their votes are crucial for any political party

That the Sangh’s anti-Christian agenda is more about politics than conversions is clear from the fact that Christian persecution is not endemic in Dalit-majority districts, although a majority of Indian Christians (around 70%) are from Dalit backgrounds. This is why Dalit districts—such as Sitapur, Hardoi and Azamgarh in Uttar Pradesh; Jalpaiguri, Cooch Behar, Nadia, South 24 Parganas and Bardhaman in West Bengal; and Gaya in Bihar—have not witnessed any major anti-Christian riot though Christian agencies are working there as well. On the contrary, a majority of tribal districts—be it Jashpur in Chhattisgarh or Banswara in Rajasthan— have long been communally sensitive. The reason is clear. Wooing Dalits is an uphill task for the BJP, as it is seen as an “upper caste” party and Dalits are well organized and support parties such as the Bahujan Samaj Party. The tribals, however, fall in the indecisive vote category.

Even in Kandhamal, Sangh outfits “befriended” the majority tribal community and not the minority Dalits, many of whom converted to Christianity in the last 100 years or more. What’s more, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) fuelled tensions in an already strained relationship between the two communities by using reservation and land issues. Exploiting these tensions, the Sangh organized a deadly wave of anti-Christian attacks using the unfortunate assassination of VHP leader Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati in August as a pretext. This is why when the Orissa Police recently confirmed the role of a Maoist group, that had claimed responsibility for the murder, a Sangh outfit circulated forged documents to implicate a local church.

Recall the attacks on Christians and their property in Kandhamal in December 2007 over an alleged attack on Saraswati—although there were no visible injuries on his body. Recall the 2004 Jhabua violence, which erupted after a nine-year-old Hindu girl was found murdered in a Christian school—a Hindu man was later arrested for the murder. Recall also the 1998 Dangs attacks that were launched after an alleged attack on a Hindutva rally—an allegation that had no evidence.

That the Orissa violence was organized is also clear from the fact that what started in one district soon spread to more than 14 districts of Orissa and several other states, mainly BJP-ruled Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh. This at a time when several state assembly elections as well as national elections are around the corner.

Vishal Arora is a Delhi-based commentator. Comments are welcome at theirview@livemint.com

Trouble at Om

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Hindu rage is the newest threat to civil society.
By Sagarika Ghose

Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur is a woman representing "Hinduism". Yet she is accused of killing innocents in bomb blasts at Malegaon in September. On tape, she utters the chilling words, "Why did more people not die?". The alleged mastermind of the Malegaon blasts is a serving army officer Lt. Colonel Shrikant Purohit.

The Bhonsla Military Academy in Nashik, it is claimed, trained as many as 54 men in military and bomb making technology in 2001.The Malegaon blast investigation is yielding astounding results: there have been 9 arrests so far from Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. The network is extensive, well funded, welded by sheer hatred.

Hindu samitis and sanghs are proliferating. Their membership is made up mostly of young men. These young men feel constantly insulted, constantly outraged by plays, articles and minorities. Their method of protest is always violence.

A group called the Hindu Janjagran Samiti exploded bombs outside a Thane auditorium that was presenting a play that was supposed to be "anti Hindu". A group called the Shiv Sangram Samiti attacked the home of newspaper editor Kumar Ketkar because he wrote an article asking why the Maharashtra government was constructing a Shivaji statue. At a seminar in Delhi University, an ABVP activist spat in the face of SAR Geelani, once an accused in the parliament attack case. At MS University in Baroda, VHP activists attacked an artist during an art exhibition for hurting "Hindu sentiments." MF Husein still cannot return to India as several cases against him for hurting "Hindu sentiment".

In Delhi University ABVP activists created an uproar over an academic text on the Ramayan that was causing hurt to "Hindu sentiments". Young men who should be working at their careers or studies, are busy feeling insulted about their gods and goddesses.

"Hindu rage" was supposed to have subsided after the demolition of the Babri Masjid. Under the soothing influence of AB Vajpayee, as the NDA was tempered by governance, Hindu anger seemed to be becoming slowly irrelevant. In 2006 when BJP leaders sought to undertake "national integration" rath yatras to mobilize "Hindu rage" about the "blatant minority appeasement policies" of the UPA, these yatras failed to strike a public chord.

A globalizing forward looking economy seemed to have little time for calls to aggressive identity politics. Yet today, an exponentially increasing aggression characterises the "Hindu". The Hindu is angry about Muslims, angry at Christians, angry that young women are not wearing traditional clothes, angry at "anti-Hindu Euro-Indians" or "pseudo-seculars" who supposedly defend Muslims.

How are we to understand this Hindu rage? Why do young so-called "Hindu" men want to bash, bomb, destroy, use abusive language and spit? Islamist terrorism, with its roots in the conflagrations of West Asia, its ideology, its preachers, its enemy in the Great Satan posits itself as the nemesis of industrialized West.

The global jihad is the result of a lethal combination of weapons and ideological brainwashing. Islamist terror has its recognizable motivations and goals. But what is making the Hindu angry? And why is he/she trying to create a copycat terrorism to compete with the Muslim, when the global jihad has hardly got India as uppermost on its radar?

The first reason could be frustration. In the years that Islamist groups either from Pakistan or Bangladesh recruited Muslims to their cause, the Indian state resoundingly failed in many cases to apprehend the real culprits. The failure to win the war against the Islamist terrorist, the manner in which militants were freed after the Kandahar hijacking, created the fear that the government, of whichever party, was weak and powerless. "Reprisal terrorism" may well be the reason why an army officer starts making bombs.

But there is a more important reason for Hindu rage. And this lies, in what social scientists describe as the commonality between the ascetic and the terrorist. Both the ascetic and the terrorist feel that they are not part of society.

They feel they are left out of economic progress and left out of the political mainstream. There are millions of individuals who even at age 35 get nowhere in life. Their small business packs up or their promotions are denied. In an earlier time these bitter men would have become sadhus. Now, they get recruited to the cause of Hindu rage. The persistent perception of failure in a success-oriented society, the daily humiliation of being the loser when everyone around seems to be winning, the factory of glossy cultural products like ads and movies that scream "I have it and you don't," is creating armies of recruits to Hindu "rage".

The thousands of underemployed or semi-employed youths who are perpetually available to be part of screaming "nationalist" mob against "minorities", are not just protesting about Muslims: they are screaming out their own economic and cultural deprivation. Thus, the fashion show, St Valentine's Day, the English-speaking "pseudo secularists" all the demonstrable symbols of the economy that are new and which appear successful, must be met with hatred and violence because "success" is the enemy.

The sad truth is that as political parties become family businesses and as the education available in small town schools collapses, the successful are now a miniscule minority. The benefits of the English language is showered on a few but totally denied to the many. Sadhvi Pragya Singh holds a Masters degree in History and likes riding motorbikes. In a society which provides equal opportunity, making bombs (allegedly) need not have been this fiery woman's only method to express her individuality.

The BJP has made an important contribution to public life. It has showed that so called "secular" governments were flirting with zealots, encouraging Muslims not to follow the laws of independent India and making apology the duty of every Hindu. Yet the sophisticated arguments made by the BJP leaders in Delhi have become blunt weapons by the time they have trickled down to the alleys of Jammu and Kandhamal. Hindu "rage" is fast slipping out of control of the sangh leadership.

When parties are powerless, society must act. We Hindus, (like Muslims must as well) must reclaim our religion from the angry "terrorists". We are lovers of earth, trees and mountains; blind hatred is not our creed. We must draw our children away from the malign "religion" of "Sadhvi" Pragya Thakur and lead them instead to the magnificent river which is our ancestor. A river that reminds every child of the dignified spirituality of the world's oldest living faith.

Pawar to head central team to Kandhamal

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New Delhi, Nov 12 (IANS) A four-member ministerial delegation, led by Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar, will visit Orissa's violence-hit Kandhamal district Nov 17, an official said Tuesday.

The team, during its two-day visit, would assess the situation in the district that witnessed anti-Christian attacks since Aug 25 following the killing of a Hindu leader. The other members of the central team are Tribal Affairs Minister P.R. Kyndiah, Transport Minister T.R. Baalu and Social Justice Minister Meira Kumar.

They are expected to discuss a rehabilitation plan for the thousands who fled their homes with the Orissa government, the official told IANS.

The team will hold talks with the Kandhamal district collector Nov 17 and visit refugee camps in Pikabali, Raikia and Nuagaon, before leaving for Bhubaneswar Nov 19, the official said.

The central team's visit comes in the wake of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's offer of financial help to reconstruct the churches and homes vandalised during the anti-Christian attacks in the state.

The prime minister had offered financial help when Samuel Kobiya, general secretary of the Geneva-based World Council of Churches (WCC) met him in New Delhi last month.

Different Christian groups had drawn Singh's attention towards the alleged harassment of Christians.

Kandhamal district saw large-scale attacks on Christians and their places of worship, after the Aug 23 killing of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Swami Laxmanananda and four of his aides.

Though Maoist rebels have claimed responsibility for the killings, radical Hindu groups hold Christians responsible. At least, 38 people have been killed in the violence that has left more than 20,000 people homeless. Around 11,000 people are still living in relief camps.

IANS

Religious heads want centre shield - Complaints of atrocities submitted to CM

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OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

Father Cheenath with Christian leaders on their way to meet the chief minister at the secretariat on Monday. Pix by Sanjib Mukherjee Bhubaneswar, Nov. 10: A delegation of Christian leaders, led by Raphael Cheenath, the archbishop of the Cuttack-Bhubaneswar diocese, today requested chief minister Naveen Patnaik to retain central paramilitary forces in Kandhamal till the end of general elections. “Christians in camps and those who have taken distress departure from Kandhamal are afraid. There are few police personnel and those manning the outposts can’t defend themselves. Hence, we request for central forces to be stationed in the state till Parliament and Assembly polls are over,” said Cheenath. “Crimes are being committed at rural pockets, where police can’t reach,” he added. An estimated 10,000-15,000 Christians are living outside the district at present, most have migrated to camps in Bhubaneswar, Cuttack and Berhampur. Besides, a large number has migrated to Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Gujarat. The delegation alleged that those who returned home were being converted to Hinduism. The complaints of the group were many; Some alleged that the body of a Christian man in Sarthaguda village under Tikabali block was not allowed to be buried in the village as he did not agreed to convert. Others informed the chief minister that Christians were not allowed to harvest their paddy, again if they did not agree to convert. The members also pointed out that FIRs were not being accepted in Daringibadi and Sarangada police stations. Hailing the decision of the government to set up a fast-track court in Kandhamal for expeditious trial of riot-related cases, the delegation demanded a similar court at G-Udaygiri. The judge should be from any religion other than Hinduism or Christianity, they insisted. Cheenath also said that the church was happy with the relief measures “to a certain extent”. “We have nothing to do with Naxalites and their statement related to Swami Laxnananda Saraswati. For the past three decades there has been a strong rebel presence in the state,” Cheenath replied to a question related to the death of the seer. Hearing adjourned Orissa High Court today adjourned a hearing on Utkal Christian Council’s petition challenging the validity of the appointment of former Lokpal Justice S.C. Mohapatra as the head of a commission probing into the murder of the seer till Wednesday. A two-judge bench of Chief Justice B.S. Chauhan and B.N. Mohapatra adjourned the hearing after a state counsel sought time to place arguments against the petition

Profile sensitive dists, Sstate told

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BHUBANESWAR: Centre has asked the State Government to prepare profiles of communally sensitive districts and identify areas prone to such tensions basing on the history of religious conversions and reconversions.

The guidelines assume significance in the aftermath of the riots in Kandhamal district which had a history of conversion and reconversion. In its guidelines despatched to the State Government recently, the Centre has asked that a demographic profile of communally sensitive districts should be prepared.

Besides, disputes over land or any other issues which may have a potential for generating communal disputes and tension should be properly assessed, it said. Kandhamal not only had animosity between two communities over the issue of conversion, it also had a long history of dispute over land between the Kandhas and Panas.

The Centre directed that details about these things should be systematically maintained at each police station concerned. The officials in the police stations should keep a close watch on the situation in such areas apart from periodically visiting them for promoting public contact and interface with the civilian population and community leaders. Stating that police stations and posts should be set up in all sensitive and trouble-prone areas, the guidelines maintained that manpower requirements should be realistically assessed. Besides ensuring filling up of all vacancies in police stations, it directed that they should be provided with adequate personnel, weaponry, communication links, equipment for videography, vehicles and these requirements should be reviewed.

As intelligence failure is one of the main reasons for violence, the guidelines maintained that special attention should be given to developing mechanisms for intelligence and information gathering and suitably integrating them with the response mechanism. The intelligence feedback, especially from the ground level, should be effectively made use of by the administration, it said.

Nun rape: TI parade on 10 Nov

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BHUBANESWAR, Nov 4: The sub divisional judicial magistrate, Balliguda in Kandhamal district has issued notices to the rape victim nun to remain present during test identification parade of the accused persons on 10 November.
The notice was addressed to Bishop House, Bhubaneswar in the absence of a proper address of the victim. The notice was dated 1 November.
The police had earlier prayed for conduct of TI parade in the case and appearance of the victim was essential. Nine people have been arrested in connection with the case.
Since the whereabouts of the nun is unknown and she was associated with a church which comes under the Bishop of Cuttack and Bhubaneswar notices were routed through the Bishop House contended a police officer.
Bishop House sources here however maintained that they were yet to receive any such notice.
It may be noted here that the victim nun who was raped on 25 August had said at a Press conference in New Delhi said she had no faith in the Orissa police. She demanded a CBI probe into the case.
Repeated efforts by the crime branch police to get in touch with her have failed till date. Chief minister Mr Naveen Patnaik had also appealed to the nun to cooperate with the investigations and said that the police was willing to conduct the TI parade at any place of her choice.
Reliable sources today said it is highly unlikely that the nun will present herself at Balliguda or Kandhamal district for that matter. She may move the High Court and seek any alternate venue for the identification parade, noted these sources.

Nun rape case: 5 more cops suspended

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BHUBANESWAR: The State Government today suspended five police personnel, including an Assistant Sub-Inspector, for dereliction of duty in connection with the nun rape case a week after she alleged that police deployed at K Nuagaon in Kandhamal district did not come to her rescue while she was paraded on the streets.

The incident occurred on August 25 at K Nuagaon when the nun was allegedly raped and Father Thomas Chellan was assaulted by a mob. The nun had read out a statement at New Delhi last week describing her trauma and alleged that some of the policemen deployed there were even friendly with the perpetrators of the crime.

Those suspended include ASI Rasanand Mallick, who was in charge of law and order, havildar major K.N.

Mohapatra and havildars SK Hamim, J.S. Khan and B.K. Mohanty.

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had asked Collector Krishen Kumar and SP Praveen Kumar on Wednesday to submit a report within 24 hours identifying the erring policemen who were deployed at K Nuagaon that day and had not come to the rescue of the nun.

The action was taken on the basis of the joint report. Earlier, Baliguda police station officer in-charge K.N. Rao was suspended for failing to take steps after the nun lodged an FIR on August 26. The Chief Minister has taken the view that the rape incident has brought more bad name for the State than the Kandhamal violence. A message should be sent to the rank and file of police by punishing those deployed at K Nuagaon on that day. The move is also aimed at restoring the confidence of the people in the riothit Kandhamal district.

5,000 houses under ‘Mo Kudia’ scheme

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BHUBANESWAR: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today sanctioned 5,000 houses under the ‘Mo Kudia’ scheme for the below poverty line (BPL) families of the riot-hit Kandhamal district.

The district magistrate will identify the beneficiaries under the scheme. The unit cost of the houses under the scheme has been fixed at Rs 35,000. The decision of the government will further help in the rehabilitation of the riot-hit families.

As many as 24,000 families had become homeless because of the violence and had taken shelter in different relief camps. The number of persons in the relief camps have now come down to 10,500 as many of them have left for their villages.

As the State Government has decided not to construct special rehabilitation camps for the riothit, they will be resettled in their original villages. It already has a scheme for fully damaged and partially damaged houses. The ‘Mo Kudia’ scheme will supplement the rehabilitation programme.

The Chief Minister has also asked collectors of other districts to immediately inform about their requirement of houses under the scheme.

Centre had deleted the names of 10 lakh BPL families while revising the list.

The Chief Minister had launched the ‘Mo Kudia’ scheme to protect the interest of these BPL families.

The scheme will be funded from the State’s own resources.

A provision of Rs 100 crore has been made in the Budget for the scheme.

National Commission for Minorities full report on Orissa violence

Report on the visit of the Vice Chairperson, NCM to Orissa - 11th to 13th September 2008

Following the outbreak of communal violence in Orissa after the assassination of Swami Laxamananda Saraswati, the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) decided to depute a team to the State to study the situation at first hand. Accordingly, I visited Orissa from 11th to 13th September, 2008, covering in the course of my visit, the blocks of Tikabali, Udaigiri, Raikia etc. I also called on both the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Orissa and the Governor of Orissa to share my experiences with them. Finally, I had in depth discussions with a team of officials from the Government of Orissa headed by the Chief Secretary and including the Director General of Police, Home Secretary and others.

In the first nine months of the year 2008, this is the third team from the NCM that has visited Orissa following the outbreak of communal violence in that state. The situation on the ground as I saw it holds out little hope that this will be the last. Orissa has been traumatized by vicious attacks on the Christian community which, in some pockets, continue even today. They are subjected to repeated threats that they will never be safe if they do not convert immediately to Hinduism. Earlier in December, 2007 and January, 2008, the violence was confined to Kandhamal District. On this occasion there were incidents of violence in other districts like Gajapati, Ganjam and even Bargarh. I had the opportunity to interact with three Catholic priests who were badly injured in the riots and had been shifted to a Mumbai hospital for treatment. The testimony of one of them who worked in Bargah district is attached as an annexure “A” to this report. As in the past, the brunt was borne by Kandhamal district in general and the blocks of Tikabali, Udaigiri, Raikia and K Nuagam in particular.

On the night of 23rd August, 2008, Swami Laxamananda Saraswati was brutally assassinated in his ashram at Jalespata. The very next afternoon, his body was taken in procession to Chakapad, the place where his first ashram was established. It is reported that at a place called K Nuagam, a large crowd obstructed the procession and insisted that it be diverted to places where his followers were waiting to pay homage to the slain leader. In contravention of the earlier agreement regarding the route the procession was to take, it was now diverted to cover the blocks of Udaigiri and Raigarh. This was an invitation to the mob to take over and soon mindless violence was unleashed. The Christian community fell innocent victims to wide spread acts of arson and destruction. The State Government estimates that 17 people were killed while 2,853 houses and 127 institutions were either destroyed or damaged. Unofficial estimates say that the actual figures are much higher. Since Government estimates are based on confirmed figures alone, the unofficial estimates are probably closer to the truth.

In the immediate aftermath of the violence, Christians across the district fled for their lives and took refuge in the forests nearby. Fear of attacks from Hindus in the area made it impossible for them to return to their homes. To cope with this the State Government has so far opened 14 relief camps in the 6 most affected areas of the district and approximately 20,000 people are estimated to be staying in these camps.

On my arrival in Phulbani, I visited camps in Tikamballi and its surrounding areas. I then proceeded to Udaygiri where a very large camp is located in a school in the area. The following day, after interacting with members of civil society at Phulbani I visited the huge camp at Raikia. Throughout the journey I was able to visit houses and places of worship that had been destroyed and observe the viciousness with which even everyday items like motorcycles, auto-rickshaws and tractors belonging to the Christian community had been reduced to ashes.

There can be no doubt that the entire Christian community has been completely traumatized. Retired officers from the armed forces, retired civil servants who had served the Orissa Government in senior positions and others who met me had exactly the same story to tell: they had been attacked, their homes destroyed and their family members threatened with every sort of retaliation if they did not forthwith change their religion and embrace Hinduism.

As a start, the Government must bring back a sense of normalcy and ensure that Christians are able to pursue their everyday lives without living under constant fear and threat in relief camps. The Government must also strain every nerve to see that those who murdered Swami Laxmananda Sarswari must immediately be brought to book. If outside help in the conduct of investigation is necessary it should be taken but the crime must be solved and those guilty made to pay.

Along with this the steps taken by the State Government to maintain law and order following the crime must be put under the spotlight. It was obvious that public reaction to the murder of a prominent religious leader like the Swamiji would be extreme. Yet when options to be followed after the murder were being considered, there is little evidence that high level political and official leadership offered guidance and support to the local district administration. Given the near certainty that a procession of over 170 kms with the body of the slain leader was bound to arouse huge passions it would have been proper for the senior leadership of the State to try to persuade the Swami’s followers to avoid a long procession and bury him in the ashram where he was murdered. Even if his followers had been adamant that he had to be buried at the site of his first ashram in Chakpad, the alternative of airlifting the body should have been examined.

It is certainly possible that if the procession had been banned or even delayed there might have been serious trouble at Jalaspeta. This might possibly have spread to other places as well. But a reasoned analysis of the pros and cons does not appear to have taken place. Less than 18 hours after the murder, the funeral procession was taken out and the state still reels under the events that followed it. There is little evidence that anyone at the senior levels of either the political or the official establishment participated in or attempted to influence the decision making process in such a vital matter. This is unfortunate because mature advice could have introduced a measure of sanity into the situation and resulted in a balanced, considered response.

In every camp I visited the main feeling was one of despair and hopelessness at the cruel turn of events. Practically everyone complained of the threats they had received that their return to their homes was predicated on their acceptance of the Hindu religion. I was even shown a letter addressed by name to one woman stating that the only way she could return to her home and property again was if she returned to the village as Hindu. (A copy of the letter, written in Oriya, complete with the picture of a blood stained dagger is attached with this report – Annexure “B”).

Some groups did complain that large scale conversion was at the root of the disturbances and that the Swamiji’s murder was only the trigger that set off the seething unrest that was already brewing in Kandhamal. While exact figures of the number converted are hard to come by, there is no doubt that the Christian population has registered a larger increase than that of the Hindu population. But although the Freedom of Religion Act has been in existence for about 40 years, not a single case has been registered under this Act for forced conversion in Kandhamal. If indeed conversions by force or fraud were responsible for the feelings against Christians, it is absolutely amazing that the provisions of an Act designed precisely to address such conversions have never been invoked. It gives rise to the suspicion that conversion had really very little to do with the problem.

Indeed the matter goes deeper than this. I was informed that only 2 applications for permission to convert have been received in the last 10 years in the district but I could not ascertain what action had been taken on those plications. They are probably still pending. This only underlines the fact that not much was expected of the legislation and it was treated more as a political instrument than a means to bring transparency into the conversion process. In fact further probing revealed that rules under the Act were framed only in 1999, more than 30 years after the Act was passed. This underlines, as few other things could, how legislation is sometimes passed in haste not to address a particular problem but to mollify different groups. The State Government must examine this issue in some depth. Merely keeping an Act on the statute book without implementing it or using it for the purpose for which it was intended does not help.

Since the Act is now on the statute book, however, its provisions must be used against the pernicious threats to Christians to convert forcibly to Hinduism or lose all their property and their right to return to their homes. In camp after camp I was bombarded with complaints of such threats and the fear they inspired. The provisions of an Act that seeks to outlaw and punish conversions made by force and fraud must now be used to achieve that purpose, viz. to take action against those who seek to convert others to Hinduism by using threats and force.

During my last visit to Orissa in April 2008, I was told that 127 cases had been registered and 187 people had been arrested. On checking I found that only 14 of these had been charge sheeted, 5 cases closed and about 108 cases were still pending. On this occasion 203 cases have been regi stered against 223 people who have been arrested. It is impossible to over emphasize the importance of quick investigation and early filing of charge sheets in court. If the impression gains ground that those indulging in rioting, arson and murder will get away with little more than a slap on the wrist in the form of arrest and early release on bail and that investigation will invariably be tardy, it will be an invitation to people to take the law into their own hands. For this purpose the State must depute special investigators to Kandhmal district for as long as it takes them to complete the investigation into all the cases registered in the district. It will be quite impossible for the local administration to cope with this huge task without any outside assistance and if it is not done speedily, it will, as I have pointed out above, be seen as the weakness and ineptitude of the administration.

One particularly heart rending experience in relief camps was the problem faced by those who lost their loved ones to violence but were unable to recover their bodies because these had been burnt or had been destroyed by wild animals. Without the recovery of the body and a post mortem being performed on it, compensation promised to the next of kin of those killed in the riots is not given. The trauma faced by such persons can well be imagined. Not only have they lost their loved one (usually the breadwinner) but insult is added to injury when relief promised to them is denied for reasons beyond their control. While Government procedures do call for the recovery of the body and for the performance of a post mortem, a more flexible approach is needed in times like this. Perhaps Government can rely on the testimony of eye witnesses to the murder and even take an indemnity bond from anyone receiving compensation in respect of a person whose body has not been found. But human suffering on such a massive scale should not be compounded by insistence on bureaucratic procedures. Since compensation for the next of kin of those killed in such riots is also offered by the Central Government, both the sums received should be pooled and invested in some security that will give a good return to the individual.

All the camps that I saw had medical teams in position and I was informed that they were manned by personnel drawn from different parts of the State. I was also informed that some NGOs had offered their services to conduct medical operations. Such offers should be freely accepted even if they come from the so called Christian NGOs. Since inmates of the camps are all from the same religion there is little prospect of controversy arising out of a discriminatory approach to medical services. In the same way there should be no objection to allowing Christian groups to distribute relief in the camps. Since only Christians are housed in the camp there can be no allegations of a sectarian approach to the distribution of relief.

Once peace and normalcy are restored, the emphasis must go to rehabilitation. The State’s record on this front last time was satisfactory but if the same level of efficiency is to be maintained some more manpower would be needed. There is a strong case for deputing extra officers to work in Kandhamal district for rehabilitation on the same lines as extra officers from the police department assist in the work of investigation. The details should be worked out by the State Government and the district authorities in Kandhamal.

In my last report I had covered the need for confidence building measures to build bridges between estranged communities. This is a vital tool in the quest to maintain lasting and durable peace between neighbours. Mohalla Committees have worked wonders in bringing people together in places like Mumbai. But the initiative must be taken when there is peace and people are receptive to such ideas. It is doubtful if the State Government acted on this recommendation in the past. I believe that it is vitally important for them to do so when things settle down in Kandhamal.

Although Orissa has a sizeable minority population it is surprising that it does not have a Minority Commission. Such a Commission will not guarantee that no riot will ever take place but it does provide a useful feedback to Government and, more importantly, a place where people who feel marginalized can let off steam. This recommendation also has been made in the past but has yet to be acted upon.

Conclusions and Recommendations

The agony of Christians in Orissa continues unabated even today in selected pockets of Kandhamal. Full normalcy is yet to be restored and reports of arson, attacks on houses and places of worship and harassment of Christians still come in. Indeed reports that have come in after my return from Orissa show that far from improving things have actually got worse and trouble is spreading to districts which were so far quite peaceful. The communal divide appears to be as strong as before and there has been little success in reining in the extreme fringe that has encouraged and fostered the spread of intolerance.

Christians are still forced to live in an atmosphere of extreme insecurity under threat that if they do not convert to Hinduism their lives would not be safe and their properties would be forfeited. The community has suffered immense damage to their property, their places of worship and above all to their psyche in this macabre drama that has played out twice in the space of less than a year. This reflects very poorly on a secular multi ethnic country like India with a proud tradition of not merely tolerating diverse cultures and beliefs within the body politic but actively encouraging their growth and development. Unless steps are taken immediately to restore normalcy and instill a measure of confidence and security among Christians, we will not only irreparably damage the pluralistic society of which Orissa is so rightly proud but we leave the door open for lumpen, extremist elements to occupy space that should rightly be occupied by the state and civil society groups. The implications of this for a sensitively located state like Orissa are frightening. Steps must be taken immediately to identify those responsible for promoting hatred and the poison of communal unrest. They must not be allowed to roam freely around the area to spread their pernicious doctrines as they now do. If the state is unable to do this the Central Government must consider their own response.

Recommendations.

1. Strong steps to restore full normalcy must be taken immediately and a sense of confidence should be built up among Christians. This should be done in a variety of ways but most especially by seeing that firm action is taken against the instigators of violence who spread communal hatred. If the state is unable to do this the Centre should consider an appropriate response in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution
2. The political leadership should consider holding a peace march in the most affected areas along with religious leaders of both sides. The top cadres of the state leadership should also re-examine their response to incidents like the murder of Swami Laxamananda Sarswati and ensure that they play a more effective role in influencing important decisions..
3. The provisions of the Orissa Freedom of Religion Act must be invoked against those using force to convert Christians to Hinduism.
4. Investigations into cases filed must be completed under a time bound programme and charge sheets filed in the court. If the number of cases is sufficiently large, establishment of special court(s) could be considered.
5. Extra manpower at a sufficiently senior level must be deputed to Kandhamal to assist in investigation of cases and in rehabilitation measures. It will be impossible for the district administration to cope with this task by relying only on their limited resources.
6. Christian medical relief teams should be allowed to work in the affected areas. Similarly, Christian groups should be allowed to distribute relief materials in the camps, if necessary, in partnership with the Red Cross.
7. In special cases where the dead body of a victim of the riots cannot be traced for good and sufficient reasons, ex gratia compensation must be given to the heirs of the victim after getting an indemnity bond from them if necessary.
8. Compensation from the Centre and the State must be pooled together and invested in a good security that can bring in a rate of return of about 10 percent.
9. Once peace is restored, confidence building measures between the two communities must be put in place. These can include street plays, poetry competitions dramas and mohalla committees.
10. Orissa must constitute a Minority Commission as soon as possible.
11. Compensation must be given by the Government for reconstructing all religious places destroyed or damaged both in the recent riots and those which took place earlier. Since the rationale for this recommendation has been covered in detail in my last report of April 2008 it will not be repeated here. In fact the last three recommendations have been made in previous reports but because they have not yet been implemented they are reiterated here.

I, The Convert

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Illustration by Sorit

OPINION

I, The Convert

My conversion was not a change of religion; it was a change of heart

Anand Mahadevan

I was born a Brahmin and am the grandson of a priest whom I dearly loved. I am educated and my current professional standing indicates that I am reasonably intelligent. I am also affluent and my income would put me distinctly in the upper middle class bracket. I guess that would make me high-caste, rich and smart. In other words, I am not a tribal, or poor or dim-witted. And yet, I chose to become a follower of Jesus Christ.

The world would call me a convert to Christianity. I have no problems with that, though I see my faith more as a relationship with God through Jesus Christ than as a religion. And for the record, I can truthfully claim that no one financially induced or threatened or deceived me into converting to Christianity.

I am fiercely proud of my national identity as an Indian and I am completely at peace with my cultural identity as a Hindu. I retain the name my parents gave me. My wife, who also shares my faith, continues to go by her Hindu name. We have two children and we have given both distinctly Hindu names. In fact, many of my colleagues and acquaintances who may happen to read this column are likely to be surprised. They have no inkling about my faith, for I generally don't go about announcing it. But if someone does ask me the reason behind the joy and hope that is everpresent in my life, I am always delighted to share it with them.

I write this piece to make one point—that my conversion was not a change of religion but a change of heart. To explain this, I need to go back to my childhood in Chennai, similar to that of so many other Tamil Brahmin boys like me. My grandfather, every bit the virtuous priest, had enormous influence over me. I absolutely adored him and as a toddler, always clung to him. He too loved me to a fault. There was no wish of mine that he would not rush to fulfil. But even in my early, formative years I was unable to relate to the religion he fervently practiced. Later, in my school days, I once spent my summer holidays with him in Trichy. Memories of dawn walks with him, for the ritualistic dip in the Cauvery river, cow in tow, are still fresh in my memory. I learnt many shlokas, some of which I still remember. But I never understood any of it and none of it helped me connect with God.

When I was 19, a Christian friend with whom I used to play cricket invited me to his house for prayer. If he had invited me to a pub, or party, I would have gone too. At his home, he and his sister prayed for me. It was a simple yet delightful conversation with God that lasted all of five minutes. I don't remember it verbatim, but they articulated a prayer of blessing on my life, future, career and family. It was a simple affair—no miracles, no angels visiting. All they did was utter a deep human cry out to the creator God and His only son Jesus Christ. When they said Amen, I felt in my heart a desire to follow Jesus.

It was a faith encounter with God that I shall not even attempt to understand, rationalise or explain. I simply accept it. It is my faith. It is what I choose to believe. That evening I did not change my religion, for in reality I had none. Hinduism was my identity, not my religion. It still is.

The Christianity I acquired that evening is not a religion. On the contrary, it is an intensely intimate relationship with Jesus. Over the past fifteen years, I have come to know this Jesus even closer. I know Him as the pure and sinless Son of a Holy God. And I know Him as a dear friend to whom I pray and talk to every day—about my career, my dreams, successes, failures, finances and even my sexuality.

If I read a good book, watch a good movie (Rock On is terrific, mate), or eat a good meal at a new restaurant, I would naturally tell my friends about it.In Jesus, I have discovered a truly amazing friend, guide, leader, saviour and God. How can I not tell all my friends about Him? And if anyone does listen and he too comes to believe in Jesus, I am delighted. The world would call it a conversion; I call it a change of heart, like mine.

But I would never force anyone to listen to me, leave alone financially induce, coerce or con him into believing. That to me is pointless and against the very grain of my faith. But I do have a constitutional right to practice my faith and to preach it without deception, force or bribery. It pains to see such basic rights of mankind being cruelly violated every day in this great Hindu nation.

God bless India.

---

(Anand Mahadevan is the editor of Outlook Business.)

How to donate?

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Donation in Cash

Our aim is to provide immediate help to the people on ground in the affected areas.
For a typical family of 4 to 5 members the required support would be:

Food: Rs. 50/- per week.
This is for the extra food. Lunch and dinner is provided at the relief camps. Since the food provided is just rice and potatoes and also many time insufficient and unhygienic. This amount will help family to cook some nutritious food like boiled egg and milk.

Cloths: Rs. 500/- (one time)
With this amount people can buy cloths like blankets, towels, lundis, Inner garments etc.

Donation in Kind

We have started to collect cloths (Used or New) for the people in the less affected areas since accessibility to Kandamal which is highly affected area is not there. We are partnering with few organizations in distributing cloths.

You can donate any of the below in usable condition:

1. Sarees
2. Pants
3. Shirts
4. Lungi (Only new)
5. Children Clothing
6. Bedsheets
7. Towels (Only new)

Please contact us we will let you know the collection points.

Kindly drop in a short mail to us we will mail you back with the details on how you can donate. You can either donate by cheque, cash or bank transfer

Our mail id is: support.orissa@gmail.com

For any clarifications and information please feel free to mail us.

May God bless your efforts

Orissa victim Fr. Bernard Digal passes away

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By Team Mangalorean

Chennai/Mumbai October 28, 2008: Fr. Bernard Digal, one of the victims of Orissa carnage who was beaten up mercilessly by the Hindu fundamentalists on August 25, lost his battle for life and succumbed to the injuries today October 28, 2008.

Archbishop of Cuttack-Bhubaneshwar Raphael Cheenath SVD in a communiqu with Mangalorean.com said that Fr. Digal had been to Chennai to visit the Vicar General of the Archdiocese who had undergone a bypass surgery. While in Chennai Fr. Digal again developed health complications due to the internal injuries that he had received, and was admitted to St. Thomas Hospital in Chennai where he was operated by the doctors to remove a blood clot from his brain.

Archbishop Raphael Cheenath SVD rushed to Chennai to be at his side when he learnt that Fr. Digal's condition further deteriorated. Fr. Bernard who was kept on respirator slipped into coma as both his lungs collapsed and he passed away on the night of Tuesday, October 28, 2008 at 9:25pm(local time).

Archbishop Raphael Cheenath who administered the Sacrament of anointing of the Sick, mourning the death of Fr. Digal said that, "The Church in Orissa is blessed with a Martyr for the suffering and persecuted Church. May he now enjoy the Crown of glory from His Lord and Master, he said adding "Let us continue to show our solidarity and our spiritual closeness to our people in Orissa."

According to the Archbishop, Fr. Digal's body will be flown to Archbishop's house in Bhuvaneshwar today October 29, 2008. Fr. Digal was a native of Tiangia, Raikia (Khandamal district) and he had mentioned in his will that he would be laid to rest in his native place after his death. "If the situation permits, we will fulfill his wish and he will be laid to rest according to his will," Archbishop told mangalorean.com.

Fr Digal was brutally beaten up on August 25 and was left in the forest half naked and bleeding the entire night. He was later admitted to the Holy Spirit Hospital in Mumbai.

"The Christians in the district of Kandhamal have a powerful intercessor in heaven, Fr. Bernard will now continue his work for our people from his heavenly home," he said.

Kandhamal Violence Photos 6

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Bajrang Dal planned Orissa violence: CPM

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NEW DELHI: The issue of anti-Christian violence in Orissa and Karnataka echoed in the Lok Sabha on Friday. Left and other parties accused the BJD-BJP
and BJP governments, respectively, of inaction against offshoots of the RSS that were alleged to be behind the attacks. ' In a heated discussion between Left parties and BJP-BJD MPs, which forced a 90-minute adjournment of the House, CPM member Basudeb Acharia accused the police and administration in the two states of remaining “mute spectators” even as Christians were butchered. This was enough to get BJP and BJD MPs on their feet who described the recent violence as ethnic strife borne out of rivalry between Pana and Khand tribes. Initiating the discussion on attacks on Christians and their institutions in Orissa and Karnataka, Mr Acharia equated the violence to the 2002 Gujarat riots saying, “Christians have been butchered” in the two states. Alleging that the report card was “grim” with over 50 Christians killed on burnt alive and a nun raped in Orissa, Mr Acharia said that all this was despite the fact that the killing of VHP leader Swami Lakshmananda Saraswati — the alleged trigger for the anti-Christian attacks by Hindu outfits — was an act of the Maoists. “But within an hour of the killing on August 23, Bajrang Dal and VHP organised themselves with guns and swords, attacked Christians and burnt their houses,” the CPM leader alleged. Describing the attacks as planned, Mr Acharia charged the state police and administration of remaining a “silent spectator” to the mindless violence. “The Hindutva goons were given a free hand and all police forces were withdrawn,” he alleged. He dismissed suggestions that the violence had to do with forced conversions stating that tribals had their own religion which is animistic. In Karnataka, Mr Acharia pointed out, the president of Bajrang Dal had himself stated that he had destroyed several churches. “Despite that the state government has not done anything,” he said suggesting that the Hindu forces wanted to “convert Karnataka into a Hindutva laboratory.” Mr Acharia also took the Centre to task for not ‘doing enough’ to correct the situation in Orissa and Karnataka. This, he said, was obvious when nothing came out of the recent meeting of the National Integration Council. Coming forward to defend the response of the Orissa government to the attacks in Kandhamal, BJP MP Kharabela Swain recalled that over 1,000 people had already been arrested. Mr Swain also recalled that the nun who had pressed rape charges had refused to come forward to identify the culprits. (See adjacent report). In any case, he argued that the violence was essentially on account of rivalry between the Pana and Khand tribes. To buttress his claim, Mr Swain quoted from Union home minister Shivraj Patil’s recent statement that the strife in Orissa was not a communal one but rather an ethnic one. This was objected to by Mr Patil, who intervened immediately saying that “please don’t put words into my mouth.” Stating that the government could do little to resolve the ethnic conflict, Mr Swain assured the House that the “BJP is not against Christians...we respect them as they are very sophisticated and learned.” Participating in the debate, Union minister Mani Shankar Aiyar put the entire blame for the Orissa situation on the ruling BJD’s alliance with the BJP. “BJD is saying conversions are responsible for the violence in the state. But conversions cannot be made an excuse for mass murder, mass arson and mass displacement.” He pointed out that the state government had allowed VHP leader Praveen Togadia to visit the trouble-torn regions to spread “more hatred” but did not allow minister of state for home.

Kandhamal produces some of world's best turmeric

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Phulbani (Orissa) (IANS): Not many know that Kandhamal district, where anti-Christian violence has reared its ugly head in the last two months, produces some of the world's best organically grown turmeric.

What's more, turmeric production is likely to increase this year due to favourable climatic conditions even as its growers are still hiding in the forests for fear of being arrested for the violence.

More than 50 percent of the over 600,000 people in the forested hill district, some 200 km from state capital Bhubaneswar in this eastern Indian state, depend on turmeric cultivation and they do so by preserving the purity of the soil and their produce.

Last year the district produced about 9,000 tonnes of turmeric. This year we hope the produce will be more than 10,000 tonnes, Pramod Patnaik, secretary of the Kandhamal Apex Spice Association for Marketing (KASAM), told IANS.

KASAM is a state-run society that represents traditionally spice-growing indigenous organic farmers in the region involving 61 groups comprising 12,000 members.

Turmeric cultivation starts in May-June and harvesting is done between December and February, Patnaik said.

The produce is known as Kandhamal turmeric and it has the best international certification of organic quality. The turmeric business in the district is worth Rs.300 million.

The cultivators are mostly tribal who have been producing turmeric for generations. But many of them have been hiding in the forests lately for fear of arrests ever since anti-Christian attacks erupted in the region.

The violence began after the murder of Hindu saint Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati and four of his aides in the district Aug 23.

While police blamed Maoists for the crime, Hindus blamed Christians for it and attacked them and their property. At least 36 people have been killed and thousands rendered homeless.

The situation is returning to normal. People who are hiding in the forest will return soon. I don't think the violence will effect turmeric production. We hope for a better harvest this year, district collector Krishan Kumar told IANS.

This year the rain and climate was conducive. When the violence in the district broke the turmeric cultivation was already complete.

Organic farmers by tradition, turmeric cultivators in Kandhamal have never used synthetic chemical inputs. By adopting modern methods of organic farming they have made their fertile soil the source of the purest, best quality organic spices.
Orissa contributes about 21 percent of India's turmeric cultivation in terms of area and Kandhamal makes up for over 50 percent of the state's share.

SC declines plea for CBI inquiry into alleged rape of nun

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New Delhi, Oct 22 (PTI) The Supreme Court today declined to hand over to CBI the investigation into the alleged rape of a nun during the on-going communal violence in Orissa.
"At this stage we do not think that handing over the investigation into the case from the state police to the CBI is in the interest of the victim as well as in the interest of justice. We think that the victim will cooperate with the state police," a Bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan said.

The Bench noted that the victim has left the area and was refusing to participate in the Test Identification Parade (TIP), though nine persons have been arrested in connection with the alleged rape.

On the issue of compensation for damage caused to churches during the communal riots, the Bench asked the Orissa Government to assess the damage and assist in re-building them.

The apex Court said that proceedings in cases arising out of the violence will have to be conducted by setting up fast track courts.

Further, the Bench said that the central para-military forces provided to the state government for maintaining law and order in riot-hit area will remain there till December-end in view of the upcoming festival of Christmas.

The Archbishop of Cuttack had in a petition sought Rs three crore compensation for demolition of Churches in the anti-Christian riots, while seeking a CBI inquiry into attacks on Christians.

He alleged that Orissa government was not taking steps to arrest the culprits who allegedly raped and paraded the nun naked on August 25. PTI

Kandhamal Girja Punarnirmana daitya Sarkar Nebe: Pradhanmantri

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Christians of Orissa appeal to UN as stateless citizens

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by Nirmala Carvalho
New Delhi (AsiaNews) - The government of Orissa is closing the refugee camps and driving out thousands of Christians, without food or shelter. In the meantime, the violence continues, denounced as a genocide to the United Nations, which is being asked for immediate intervention.
Fr. Manoj Digal of the archdiocesan social service center tells AsiaNews, ”One of the three relief camps in Baliguda was shut down on Oct 15th, and 900 people sent away. It is ridiculous, these people have nowhere to go, they are defenseless, moreover they have been given just 10 kg of rice per family. How will they live? The government has not even given them tents, where will our people stay? They have lost everything, they are reduced to nothing, moreover, the looming fear of reconversion to Hinduism, if they return to their villages they can only stay as Hindus. The government has not ensured any security for these Christians. There is a grave risk and threat to their lives terror still haunting them, moreover, now radical women’s groups who are terrorising the Christian women. Our people are destitute.”

Sajan K, George, president of the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) has petitioned the United Nations over the decision by the government of Orissa to close the refugee camps in the district of Kandhamal. Sajan writes to the UN that "The New York Times on 3rd September 2008 reported that 1,400 homes and 80 churches had been destroyed or damaged. The actual figures in Orissa, are more than double. Hundreds have been killed for belonging to the faith and large-scale gross human rights abuse is taking place - rape, brutal injury, police atrocities, torching of churches & property belonging to Christians, their institutions and clergy. 
Even the official figures of lives lost or crores of rupees worth property vandalized in the ensuing carnage, has shocked civil society in India and abroad. Tens of thousands are rendered homeless, living in the forests or in government relief camps, where inhuman living conditions, devoid of basic food and medicine, cause many deaths. The Christian community seems to have lost all faith in the government to protect the life and property of its citizens, especially when it comes to the minority Christians, who constitute a meager 2.5% of the country's population."

"The states where this is happening, especially Orissa," he continues, "are ruled by the opposition right-wing BJP and allies, and this being an election year, the government is reluctant to act, as it is not seen to be politically expedient. It's been months since the Christmas eve massacre in Orissa and the community has ever since, been knocking at all doors - the president and prime minister of India downwards - but to no avail. As of today, the attacks continue with a renewed vigour of ethnic cleansing and genocide in Orissa and spreading to at least eight other states of India. The onslaught would have claimed more lives, if only the media and human rights activists had not played a significant restraining role, by highlighting the brutality of the Hindu extremists, backed by an inactive government, which if not abets the communal violence, certainly turns a Nelson's eye to it. There are all indications of a worse holocaust to follow the communal carnage, which we fear cannot be prevented by the government. Christian NGOs and the Church are not allowed to even fend for their own and care for the hurt and dying."
"These Orissa Christians and others to follow," he concludes, "express the desire to be termed Prima Facie Refugees and urge you, through the UNHCR to deem them so, in order that they can be covered by a legal framework to protect their human dignity from rights violations and abuse. Currently, they along with tens of thousands, are a stateless people, as the writ of the government of India does not run large in the state of Orissa." "Tens of thousands such as these will either be killed by the Hindu extremists or will die of injury and malnourishment, if no attention is paid immediately. Many of these are old, women, children, babies, clergy. who are the most vulnerable sections. We appeal to you on humanitarian grounds, not take a strictly legalistic view, as precious lives are being lost by every day, even as blood is split by the hour." "We also appeal to the UN and its world agencies, to exercise its power and influence, to protect lives and prevent further killings in India or discrimination on the basis of race, religion or caste.”
Meanwhile, the violence is spreading through the entire country. On October 14, two churches were attacked in Erode, in Tamil Nadu: unknown assailants threw stones, at night, breaking windows and furniture.

There are still seeds of hope amid the disaster. Sister M. Suma, regional superior of the Missionaries of Charity of Mother Teresa of Calcutta, fled from the order's house in Sukananda, district of Kandhamal, burned down on September 30 by Hindu extremists. She tells AsiaNews that she is being allowed to stay for a couple of days in the refugee camp in Raikia, where she says "I hope I can share with them the love of Mother Teresa. Keep the joy of loving God in your heart."

Scores of Christians convert to Hinduism in Kandhamal

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Phulbani (Orissa) (IANS): Scores of Christians have converted to Hinduism in Orissa's troubled Kandhamal district in the past weeks to save their lives and properties, a government official admitted on Friday.
"We have received over 50 complaints where people alleged that Hindu villagers are forcing them to convert to Hinduism if want to save their lives and properties," a senior district administration official told IANS.
"Over 30 people have informed us in writing that they changed their religion to Hinduism on their own and without any force," he said, adding that all the complaints were being investigated and action would be taken as per law.
However, Sajan K. George, president of the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC), said that the number of people who converted to Hinduism forcibly would be more than 600.
"The villagers tonsured my head and forced me to drink cow dung water," a victim claimed in a relief camp in this town, the district headquarters of the volatile Kandhamal district that has borne the brunt of the communal violence following the killing of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati and four of his aides on Aug 23 at his Jalespata Ashram.
Hindus in the region blamed Christians for the killing and went on a rampage against the community.
At least 36 people, mostly Christians, were killed and thousands of homes burnt in the district during the violence. Over 20,000 people, mainly Christians, have taken shelter in relief camps after their houses were torched by rampaging Hindu mobs.
Although there has been no violence since past over two weeks, tension continues in the region over religious conversions.
While night curfew is in force in nine towns in Kandhamal, prohibitory orders banning any gathering of four and more people are in force across the district.

Hindu fundamentals are under attack

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28 Sep 2008, 0121 hrs IST, Shashi Tharoor
There are basically two kinds of politics in our country: the politics of division and the politics of unity. The former is by far the more popular, as politicians seek to slice and dice the electorate into ever-smaller configurations of caste, language and religion, the better to appeal to such particularist identities in the quest for votes. But what has happened in recent weeks in Orissa, and then in parts of Karnataka, and that threatens to be unleashed again in tribal districts of Gujarat, is a new low in our political life. The attacks on Christian families, the vandalism of their places of worship, the destruction of homes and livelihoods, and the horrific rapes, mutilations and burning alive that have been reported, have nothing to do with religious beliefs - neither those of the victims nor of their attackers. They are instead part of a contemptible political project whose closest equivalent can in fact be found in the "Indian Mujahideen" bomb blasts in Delhi, Jaipur, and Ahmedabad, which were set to go off in hospitals, marketplaces and playgrounds. Both actions are anti-national; both aim to divide the country by polarising people along their religious identities; and both hope to profit politically from such polarisation.

We must not let either set of terrorists prevail.

The murderous mobs of Orissa sought to kill Christians and destroy their homes and places of worship, both to terrorise the people and to send the message 'you do not belong here'. What have we come to that a land that has been a haven of tolerance for religious minorities throughout its history should have sunk so low? India's is a civilisation that, over millennia, has offered refuge and, more important, religious and cultural freedom, to Jews, Parsis, Muslims and several varieties of Christians. Christianity arrived on Indian soil with St Thomas the Apostle ('Doubting Thomas'), who came to the Kerala coast some time before 52 AD and was welcomed on shore by a flute-playing Jewish girl. He made many converts, so there are Indians today whose ancestors were Christian well before any European discovered Christianity (and before the forebears of many of today's Hindu chauvinists were even conscious of themselves as Hindus). The India where the wail of the muezzin routinely blends with the chant of mantras at the temple, and where the tinkling of church bells accompanies the gurudwara's reading of verses from the Guru Granth Sahib, is an India of which we can all be proud. But there is also the India that pulled down the Babri Masjid, that conducted the pogrom in Gujarat and that now unleashes its hatred on the 2% of our population who are Christians.

As a believing Hindu, I am ashamed of what is being done by people claiming to be acting in the name of my faith. I have always prided myself on belonging to a religion of astonishing breadth and range of belief; a religion that acknowledges all ways of worshipping God as equally valid - indeed, the only major religion in the world that does not claim to be the only true religion. Hindu fundamentalism is a contradiction in terms, since Hinduism is a religion without fundamentals; there is no such thing as a Hindu heresy. How dare a bunch of goondas shrink the soaring majesty of the Vedas and the Upanishads to the petty bigotry of their brand of identity politics? Why should any Hindu allow them to diminish Hinduism to the raucous self-glorification of the football hooligan, to take a religion of awe-inspiring tolerance and reduce it to a chauvinist rampage?

Hinduism, with its openness, its respect for variety, its acceptance of all other faiths, is one religion which has always been able to assert itself without threatening others. But this is not the Hindutva spewed in hate-filled diatribes by communal politicians. It is, instead, the Hinduism of Swami Vivekananda, who, at Chicago's World Parliament of Religions in 1893, articulated best the liberal humanism that lies at the heart of his (and my) creed. Vivekananda asserted that Hinduism stood for "both tolerance and universal acceptance. We believe not only in universal toleration, but we accept all religions as true." He quoted a hymn: "As the different streams having their sources in different places all mingle their water in the sea, so, O Lord, the different paths which men take through different tendencies, various though they appear, crooked or straight, all lead to Thee." Vivekananda's vision - summarised in the credo Sarva Dharma Sambhava - is, in fact, the kind of Hinduism practised by the vast majority of Hindus, whose instinctive acceptance of other faiths and forms of worship has long been the vital hallmark of Indianness.

Vivekananda made no distinction between the actions of Hindus as a people (the grant of asylum, for instance) and their actions as a religious community (tolerance of other faiths): for him, the distinction was irrelevant because Hinduism was as much a civilisation as a set of religious beliefs. "The Hindus have their faults," Vivekananda added, but "they are always for punishing their own bodies, and never for cutting the throats of their neighbours. If the Hindu fanatic burns himself on the pyre, he never lights the fire of Inquisition."

It is sad that this assertion of Vivekananda's is being contradicted in the streets by those who claim to be reviving his faith in his name. "The Hindu militant," Amartya Sen has observed, presents India as "a country of unquestioning idolaters, delirious fanatics, belligerent devotees, and religious murderers." To discriminate against another, to attack another, to kill another, to destroy another's place of worship, is not part of the Hindu dharma so magnificently preached by Vivekananda. Why are the voices of Hindu religious leaders not being raised in defence of these fundamentals of Hinduism?

Open letter to the Prime Minister

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By eminent Prof Chitta

Kandhamal Violence in - NDTV We the people

Have the attacks on Christians destroyed India's image?

NDTV We the People

Kandhamal: The March Of Hindutva In Tribal Orissa

Archana Prasad

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The Christians will be wiped out from Kandhamal. (A pledge taken by those present in the VHP Shhradhanjali Sabha of Laxmanananda Saraswati, Chakapad, Phulbani, September 6, 2008.)

“You are just burning tyres. How many Isai houses and churches have you burnt? Without kranti (revolution) there can be no shanti (peace). Narendra Modi has done kranti in Gujarat, thats the reason why shanti’s there.” (Laxmanananda Saraswati, quoted in Tehelka January 19, 2008).

“Attack on Swamiji is the same as attacking Hindu Religion. All saints and sadhus need to counter attack unitedly otherwise India will be converted into a Christian nation”. (Apurvananda Maharaj at VHP Shhradhanjali Sabha, September 6, 2008)

THE Hindutva project in Kandhamal, Orissa, began in 1969 with the arrival of VHP leader Laxmanananda Saraswati who established his ashram in Chakapad, Kandhamal district. The death of Saraswati on August 23, 2008 and its aftermath has only exposed the extent and expansion of Hindu right wing penetration. By 2003 the Sangh Parivar operated through at least 35 different organisations including political, ideological, service and charitable educational and health institutions. The RSS runs 2,273 shakhas in Orissa, with a membership of 100,000 while the VHP has a base of 60,000 in the state. The Bajrang Dal has 20,000 members who serve in 200 akharas and the Durga Vahini has 7000 members working in close coordination with RSS, and VHP cadres (Rupen Bannerjee, ‘Spread of Saffron’ India Today January 27, 2003). This explains the aggressiveness with which the Sangh Parivar has responded to the slaying of Laxmanananda Saraswati, the main organiser and key functionary of the VHP in the state for the last 36 years.

CASTE, CLASS AND UNDER-DEVELOPMENT

The growth of the Hindutva project has been influenced by the under-development of the region which has compelled tribal and dalit families to depend on voluntary social welfare measures for their survival. Till the early 1970s when the first Ashram was set up at Chakapad by Laxmananada Saraswati, the Christian missionaries constituted one of the most influential forces that organised the pano scheduled caste (forming approximately 16.6 per cent in 2001) and the Kui and Kandh scheduled tribes (54.7 per cent as in census 2001). Since many of the converts belonged to the socially oppressed dalit communities, Saraswati largely concentrated on building a Hindu consciousness amongst the Kui and Kandha who formed a majority of the population.

Most of the dalits and tribals are marginal farmers and rural workers who also depend on the sale of forest produce as their supplementary income. Kandhamal, is a natural resource exporting region: tamarind, ginger, sal resin, sal seeds and Kandhamal turmeric being the most important produce. The collectors of this produce get one-third to one-fourth of the minimum support price offered by the government. As in the case of other tribal areas, there are at least four layers of traders between the government depot and the collectors. A majority of the big traders are outsiders (from Gajapati or Ganjam districts) who form the middle and upper castes that have traditionally supported the Hindutva agenda. But many of the petty traders are the Pano, an important SC group, a few of whom have come into the ownership of tribal lands. The economic empowerment of a strata of the Pano is attributed to their rejection of brahmanical Hinduism and conversion into Christianity many decades ago (Pralay Kanungo, ‘Hindutva’s fury against Christians in Orissa’ EPW September 13, 2008). The limited state infrastructure and the consequent Kui, Kandh and Pano dependence on non-governmental social welfare measures have resulted in the aggravation of social and economic contradictions. This has framed the Sangh Parivar’s intervention and also made a communal project look like an ethnic strife. In this conflict the Kui Samaj Samanavaya Samiti, an apex organisation of Kandh’s and Kui tribals, appears to have emerged as one of the main allies of the Sangh Parivar.

COMMUNALISING TRIBAL IDENTITY, CHOREOGRAPHING ETHNIC STRIFE

The current conflict between Christian dalits and the Kui and Kandh Hinduised tribals began with the Christian Pano demanding ST status. They argued that they too speak the Kui language and should be thus given the same status as Kui and Kandhs. But Kui Samaj opposed this and received full support from Saraswati. Inspired by this support the Samaj called for a bandh on Christmas day resulting in the riots of December 2007. The demand of the Pano assumes importance because Orissa VHP secretary, Gauri Prasad Rath stated that the parivar organisations would ensure that those who converted to Christianity would not get the benefits of any reservation and would loose both their SC and ST status.

The perception that Kui and Kandh Christians are not tribals has been internalised by the leaders of the Kui and Kandh communities. The Kui Samaj and its leader Lambodar Kanhar has supported and agitated for the VHP demand even though he denies the links of the organisation with the RSS. The anti-Christian feeling amongst the ST leadership is more than palpable. As Kanhar states: “How can we get along with Christians? It’s like cat and mouse. We don’t like the ways of even those who are Christians among the Kandhas. We keep them apart from places of worship.” (Tehelka, January 19, 2008). This segregation of the Christian dalit and tribals from those who have been converted to Hinduism under the ‘ghar vapasi” or reconversion campaign started in the late 1980s. But the Hindu influence on the articulation of the tribal identity began much earlier. Sangh organisations, under the leadership of Laxmananda Saraswati, presented Jagannath as part of the indigenous tribal tradition, and held dharma yatras and yagnas to socialise the tribals into Hindu rituals and culture (Pralay Kanungo, ‘Hindu Entry into a Hindu Province’, EPW, 2001).

In 2000 the victory of the BJD-BJP alliance covertly supported this process and emboldened the Sangh activists. Christians claimed that the Orissa Freedom of Religion Act was used selectively to implicate them in false offences (Rise of Fascism: Victims of Communal Violence Speak, March 2008, Anhad, Delhi, pp. 227-229). By the end of the alliance government’s first tenure, the VHP had successfully managed to mobilise the tribals into a mainstream Hindu agenda by building a tribal Hindu consciousness. In October 2005 Laxmananda Saraswati reportedly said: “How will we make India a completely Hindu country? The feeling of Hindutva should come within the hearts and minds of all the people.” In April 2006, celebrating RSS architect Golwalkar's centenary, Saraswati conducted seven yagnas, and mobilised more than 30,000 tribals for the Hindutva cause. In September 2007, led by Saraswati, many Kui and Kandh tribals participated in the VHP’s statewide road-rail blockade on the ‘Ram Setu’ issue (Angana Chatterji, ‘Hindutvas Violent History’ Tehelka September 13, 2008).

It is therefore not surprising that the VHP secretary Rath proudly claims that in the last 40 years the organisation had brought atleast 50,000 tribals back into the Hindu society. It follows from this that the parivar organisations were converting about 1000 tribals a year into Hinduism. In contrast, Church reports 200-300 annual conversions under the Orissa Freedom of Religion Act, proving the charge of forcible conversions wrong. Another exaggerated claim by the Sangh Parivar is that the number of churches in Kandhamal has increased to over 921, while church sources put this number at just over 500. The creation of an image of the crusading foreign funded Christian has been crucial to expansion of Hindutva project and the building of a communal consciousness in tribal people. This also forms the basis of the anti-Christian violence and polarisation that has surfaced in the decade following Naveen Patnaik’s rule.

FORCING HINDU-CHRISTIAN SEGREGATION

The Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI) describes the current genocide in the area as an ‘attempt to annihilate the Christians’. They estimate the damage in the following way: 96 churches, 14 residential and training centres and 4009 houses of Christians have been destroyed; 22,236 people are in relief camps and more than 40,000 people have displaced into forests. But more than this, the alarming aspect of this report is the use of the September attacks to hasten the process of Hindutva expansion.

As the CBCI report states “The Christian dalit and tribals are forced to convert to Hinduism under threat. The fundamental group announces a date fixed for conversion in a selected village. Those Christian members belonging to the houses of that village are told to inform their family people to return from the relief camps or anywhere on that date. They will be asked to convert to Hinduism. They are asked to sign a document that it is done freely. If they do not accept, they are tortured and killed. If they become Hindus, they pay a fine of 1000 to 1500 rupees.” Further, if the Christians stay away “Hindu neighbours are told that the houses, the lands belong to the Hindus. All their belongings are looted, burnt and destroyed.” (Report of the CBCI Fact Finding Mission in Spirit Daily) Clearly the politics of communal Hindu transformation promoted by Laxmanananda Saraswati has reached its crescendo and requires the purging of all Christians from Kandhamal.

The making and articulation of the Hindu tribal identity has overtaken all other contradictions in Kandhamal. The ruling BJD-BJP combine calls this communal divide as an “ethnic conflict with religious overtones”. This is clearly not true because the communalisation of the tribal consciousness has been a planned project since the early 1970s which in turn has structured the ethnic conflict. Thus this conflict is a communal polarisation with an ethnic dimension. Therefore the primary task is to de-communalise the tribal identity and reduce an ethnic divide through social, political and developmental action.