Spread of RSS Hindu Terrorism Throughout India

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Recent Attacks on C hristians By Hindutva Terrorists

Uttar Pradesh, January 28 (Compass Direct News) – The Rev. Yashwant Paul was arrested on January 21 in the Ghaziabad district of Uttar Pradesh on charges of fraud in a case originally registered against him in 2004, reported the Evangelical Fellowship of India (EFI). Ramesh Chand accused Rev. Paul and his wife Monica Paul of offering him 20,000 rupees [US$508] and a job to convert to Christianity. Rev. Paul and his wife have vehemently denied the charges, according to the report. Rev. Paul was charged under the Indian Penal Code with cheating (Section 420) and criminal breach of trust (Section 407) and was locked up in the district jail of Ghaziabad; a magistrate rejected his initial bail plea. “This is an increasing and worrisome trend of pastors being accused by people who are goaded by Hinduvta [Hindu nationalist] extremists to register false cases against pastors of fraudulent conversions, to falsely implicate them,” a representative of EFI told Compass.

Karnataka – Hindu nationalist extremists belonging to the Bajrang Dal on January 17 attacked Baswamma Sangappa, 44, in Ullal, Mangalore Taluka, Karnataka for converting to Christianity, reported mangalorean.com. After attending a prayer meeting in a village home, Sangappa made a phone call from a public telephone booth at a local shop. “The petty shop owner, who overheard her conversation, asked her name and whether she was a Hindu,” Donald Menezes, chairman of the Mangalore unit of the Karnataka Mission Network (KMN) told Compass. “Baswamma told him that she had converted to Christianity 15 years ago. The shop owner then alerted a few people present there about her conversion, following which a group of extremists who were present beat her up.” Police arriving at the scene also hit her with their batons and took her in, Menezes said. Only after local Legislative Assembly Member U.T. Khader intervened was Sangappa released, he added. In a meeting with Superintendent of Police N. Satish Kumar, the KMN demanded that he take action against those responsible. Kumar ordered an inquiry into the incident, but at press time no arrests had been made.

Chhattisgarh – As if evangelizing or conversion were illegal in India, a group of Hindutva (Hindu nationalist) extremists on January 13 dragged a new convert returning from a Christian friend’s house to a police station and demanded that he be arrested for converting others in Kunkuri area in Chhattisgarh state’s Jashpur district. “A group of people from the Hindu Jagran Manch (Hindu Revival Front) brought Raju Soni to the police station and alleged that he was converting people in his neighborhood to Christianity,” a constable from Kunkuri police station, Jabarius Ekka, told Compass. “However, we refused to register any complaint against the convert.” Soni, who has been telling of God’s love since receiving Christ recently, was detained for a few hours, said Sudhir Teerthi, pastor of the independent Agape Gospel Mission church, where Soni worships. Soni, a jeweler, was baptized on January 1. Pastor Teerthi feared the extremists might now target him for asking his church members to tell others about Christ.

Madhya Pradesh – Police on January 11 arrested a pastor and five others on charges of luring a Hindu woman to convert to Christianity in Madhya Pradesh state’s Barwani district. Bhuri Bai filed a complaint against the pastor, identified only as Rawat, and the five believers for trying to convert her by offering monetary incentives, the Evangelical Fellowship of India said in a press statement. The six Christians deny the allegation, saying it is a ploy of Hindutva (Hindu nationalist) extremists, and they were released on bail. Besides the charge of allurement, they were arrested under Section 3 of the Madhya Pradesh Freedom of Religion Act (anti-conversion law) and under Sections 147, 294, 323, and 506 of the Indian Penal Code, for rioting, obscene acts, voluntarily causing hurt, and criminal intimidation, respectively. Praveen Kumar Mathur, superintendent of police of Barwani, told Compass that tensions began when some food items of Bai’s family were burnt. She claimed that local Christians burned it, but the Christians maintain that Bai’s family set fire to their own food items to implicate them in a false case.

Chhattisgarh – Hindutva (Hindu nationalist) radicals disrupted a prayer meeting and beat five Christians on January 10 in Chhattisgarh state’s Raipur district. The attackers then filed a police complaint against three of the victims, who were arrested. The incident took place at around 9 a.m. in Gathapar area, 50 kilometers (31 miles) from the state capital of Raipur. Those injured included three pastors, Dev Singh Manikpuri, Dhananjay Manikpuri and Dilip Manikpuri, all from the English Prayer Service Society (Horeb Prarthana Seva Samithi), and two other Christians, Gopal Manikpuri and Pradeep Verma. Dr. Sajan K. George, national president of the Global Council of Indian Christians said that Dev Singh Manikpuri fell unconscious after the beating and the other four also were severely injured. The attackers threatened to further harm the Christians if they conducted future meetings. The pastors, who had been invited by non-Christian villagers to conduct the meeting attended by more than 150 local people, were arrested by the Bhakhara police station and remained in jail at press time.

Chhattisgarh – Pastor Laxman Mankhi and five believers were arrested on Jan 9 after Hindu nationalists belonging to the Hindu extremist Dharma Sena filed false complaints of “forcible conversion” against them at Jagdalpur police station, Chhattisgarh. The Rev. Ajay Abraham told Compass, that Mankhi of the Beersheba Church of God in Bade Kaneri, Bastar district, was invited to pray for healing at the house of a Hindu villager, identified only as Amru, who had been regularly attending Beersheba services for a month. As Mankhi was praying over Amru, nearly 25 extremists led by a villager named Phoolchand Patel barged into the house shouting at them in abusive language, slapped Mankhi, punched and kicked the other Christians and made false allegations of forced conversion. The extremists had them arrested under Indian Penal Code Section 295 (A) for “hurting religious sentiments,” Abraham explained. Those arrested were Shyamlal Patel, Ramlal Patel, Malik Patel, Charan Patel and Laxminath Bharti.

Haryana – A mob of around 100 people from the Hindu extremist Bajrang Dal beat seven Christians and vandalized their house church on January 1 in Haryana state’s Jind district. According to the Christian Legal Association (CLA), the extremists stormed a New Year’s worship service attended by at least 20 Christians conducted by independent pastor Ashish John. Fearing for their lives, the Christians ran away as the attackers continued to damage church property. The pastor and six preachers whose names were not disclosed were injured. The Christians did not press charges, said a representative of the CLA, but the attackers tried to file a complaint accusing Pastor John of “forced” conversions. Police did not register the complaint.

CONVERT OR DIE CHRISTIANS TOLD

Hindu Nationalists Plan to Revive Tensions in Orissa, India

Christians told to convert or die after Christmas attacks; extremists plot ‘Mission 2008.’

by Vishal Arora

NEW DELHI, Amid reports of forced conversion of Christians to Hinduism following an unprecedented spate of violence over Christmas in Orissa state’s Kandhamal district, federal intelligence sources have warned churches of the likelihood of more attacks.

The intelligence department intercepted a letter by an extremist of a Hindu nationalist (Hindutva) group stating members will renew efforts to spark tensions in Kandhamal district and neighboring Chhattisgarh state, said Father Babu Joseph, spokesman of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI).

According to a fact-finding team of the Orissa state chapter of the All India Christian Council, the violence killed at least four Christians and burned 730 houses and 95 churches in the days following last Christmas Eve. Hundreds of displaced Christians in Kandhamal are in various relief camps set up by the state government, where at least two people have died recently due to ailments.

Joseph told Compass that the letter, written by an extremist of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), Murari Lal, and sent to his colleague, Saudan Singh, reveals that the Hindutva group has planned an effort to create more tensions for Christians called “Mission 2008.”

Church leaders, added Joseph, have been asked to remain alert.

Lal, who was identified as an RSS worker in Sarguja district of Chhattisgarh state, named and praised several Hindutva outfits for their “good work” in the letter.

“Our Mission 2008 and its confidential meeting took place successfully,” the letter says, according to the Daily News and Analysis (DNA) newspaper. Our hope is to create Gujarat [state] type communal frenzy in Orissa.”

Gujarat is seen as the Hindu extremist Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) “laboratory of Hindutva.” In 2002, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and his BJP colleagues allegedly allowed Hindu extremists to carry out anti-Muslim violence in which at least 2,000 people, mainly Muslims, were killed.

“We have begun a program to create communal tension by using the cow issue,” adds the letter, originally written in Hindi language. As cows are considered sacred by Hindus, extremists portray Christians and Muslims as “cow eaters,” besides accusing them of conversions and terrorism.

“In Jashpur and Sarguja districts [of Chhattisgarh state],” the letter says, “we have created a very good environment against Muslims and Christians. Adivasis [tribal people] have also started a front against foreign missionaries … This time even the Congress [Party] is supporting us.”

The letter also says there is a need to install statues of Hindu gods Hanuman and Shankar, which tribal people “recognize faster.”

“We need to install the statues as early as possible to make adivasis Hindus,” it says.

Tribal people or aboriginals in India are not Hindu. Most tribal people groups have their own faiths, mainly animistic.

RSS leader Ram Madhav, however, claimed in DNA that his organization had no role in the violence. “The RSS does not support any violence,” he said.

Christians fear the incidence of persecution will increase this year as legislative elections are expected in 10 states, including three states ruled by the BJP – Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan (See Compass Direct News, “Christians Fear More Violence in Election Year,” January 15).

Convert or Die

Although the spate of violence began in Kandhamal on December 24 and subsided in about a week, special armed forces continued to be deployed in affected areas at press time.

The Times of India newspaper reported on Tuesday (January 22) that the 700 officers of Central Reserve Police Force deployed during the week of violence would remain in Kandhamal till March 15.

Despite the presence of federal armed forces and local police, however, reports surfaced of forced conversion of Christians to Hinduism.

A local Christian source from the Indian Evangelical Team ministry told Compass on condition of anonymity that such conversions have taken place in at least four villages after the initial violence.

“In Jargi village, 41 out of the 45 families from my church became Hindu due to pressure and threats,” said the local source. “Extremist elements forced the Christians to break their church with their own hands, and now a temple will be constructed at the site.”

In Mardudi village, pastor Dibakar Digal and his wife were forced to drink cow urine and apply vermillion on their foreheads, declaring themselves Hindu. They were threatened that if they did not convert, they would be killed.

While 18 Christian families were converted in a similar fashion in Kambarkia village, nine families were converted in the same way in Dandikia village.

UCA News (UCAN) also reported on Tuesday (January 22) that Orissa Christians had been given a “convert or die” ultimatum.

“There was no other way than to convert to Hinduism,” a Christian youth, Sumant Digal, from Gochhapada village, told UCAN. Extremists had threatened to kill him and torch his house if he did not become a Hindu.

“Several people told UCA News in mid-January that although the violence had subsided, Hindu fanatics continued to threaten Christians in interior villages,” stated the UCAN report. “The radicals want Christians to convert to Hinduism or leave the area, and they threaten to kill those who do not comply.”

The Catholic news agency quoted another Christian, Pusali Digal, from Jemapadar village, as saying, “Reconvert or die, or leave the place, was the option given to me and my family.”

http://www.christiannewstoday.com/Christian_News_Report_202.html

Hindu terrorists attack christians again

80 Christians, hurt in attacks by RSS Hindu terrorists in Chhattisgarh state within weeks of Orissa violence.

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NEW DELHI, January 18 (Compass Direct News) – More than 80 people were injured in an attack on a large Christian meeting on Wednesday (January 16) in Chhattisgarh state’s Durg district, followed yesterday by an assault on a missionary camp in Dhamtari district that hurt at least a dozen Christians.

The Hindu extremist attacks come within weeks of unprecedented anti-Christian violence in neighboring Orissa state. In Chhattisgarh’s Durg district violence, Christians said it was no coincidence that Hindu nationalist (Hindutva) extremists launched the attack as the political arm of the militants, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), was holding a public meeting in the area.

The assault took place on Bhotli grounds in Gurur area of Durg district, where a local independent Christian worker, Mohan Khujjur Thomas, had organized a healing meeting for the local people, the Rev. Arpan Tarun of the Chhattisgarh Pastors’ Fellowship said.

“The attackers, who were from the extremist group Dharam Sena (Army for Religion), came in four trucks, beat Christians and others who were attending the healing meeting, and vandalized the makeshift structure,” Tarun told Compass.

Those injured include local people from other faiths who were taking interest in Christianity, Tarun said, adding that although some of the victims, including Thomas, were badly injured, no one was hospitalized.

The attackers also vandalized Thomas’ car.

The police inspector of the Gurur police station, who identified himself as D.S. Bihari, said only one of the attackers was identified and arrested, while the search for other culprits was underway.

Asked if the attackers were from a group espousing Hindutva, a nationalist ideology touting India as belonging to Hindus with other religions marginalized, Bihari pleaded ignorance, saying all he knew was that the one who was arrested is a devotee of Hindu god Hanuman.

“The investigation is on,” he added. “We should be able to arrest many more soon, and then we will know which group they belonged to.”

Hindus form more than 80 percent of the more than 1 billion people in India, with Christians amounting to about 2.4 percent of the population.

Afraid to Identify Attackers

Tarun of the Chhattisgarh Pastors’ Fellowship said police had asked victims to come to the police station to identify the attackers, but that they were too fearful to do so.

“Even if the police manage to arrest others,” he added, “they will soon be bailed out and roam free.”

Inspector Bihari said that about six kilometers (nearly four miles) from where the meeting was attacked, the BJP was holding a public meeting to launch a scheme to provide one kilogram of rice for three rupees (about 8 U.S. cents) to people through the public distribution system. Chief Minister Raman Singh organized the event, attended my numerous national leaders of the BJP.

Tarun said the presence of BJP leaders in the area emboldened the Hindutva extremists who launched the “pre-planned attack.”

“I suspect that the people who attacked the meeting had come to attend the BJP function,” he said.

The scheme was allegedly introduced as a part of the preparation for the state legislative election scheduled to take place later this year. Christians fear that upcoming elections in at least 10 states, including Chhattisgarh, will increase the incidence of anti-Christian attacks due to alleged attempts by the BJP to divide voters along the religious lines. (See Compass Direct News, “Christians Fear More Violence in Election Year,” January 15.)

A private TV news channel, IBN-7, caught the extremists vandalizing the tents in which the meeting was held. The presence of a TV camera did not deter them from engaging in the violence.

Tarun also said the chief of the Dharam Sena, identified only as Chandraval, made a statement on TV news channel E-TV threatening Christians with more attacks if such a meeting were held in the area again.

Local Christians met the district collector (administrative head) of Durg yesterday (January 17) to urge him to ensure protection of the community.

“It seems Christians have a second-class citizenship in their own country,” Tarun said, adding that Hindutva extremists in Chhattisgarh had no fear of law enforcement officials. The extremists attacked a similar meeting last year as well, he added.

Conversion Accusation

In yesterday’s assault in Dhamtari district, more than 200 members of Dharmasena, a group associated with the Hindu extremist Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, attacked a missionary health camp.

The Dharmasena extremists accused the Christians of participating in a conversion ceremony.

In neighboring Orissa state, a series of violent attacks took place in Kandhamal district from December 24, 2007 to January 2. The attacks killed at least four Christians and burned 730 houses and 95 churches, according to the All India Christian Council.

“A spate of anti-Christian attacks had taken place in Orissa state’s Kandhamal district around Christmas, and now another large attack has been launched in Chhattisgarh state,” said a representative of the Christian Legal Association of India. “If this is the beginning of a trend, it is worrisome.”

According to the latest government statistics (2001 Census), there are only 401,035 Christians in Chhattisgarh out of the total population of more than 20.8 million.

Hindu Nation: India's Religious Cleansing

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CBNNews.com - NEW DELHI, India - Three weeks after brutal attacks against Christians in India's eastern state of Orissa, hundreds of believers are still hiding out in the surrounding jungle, and 2,000 are in refugee camps.

The attacks are part of a larger campaign by Hindu radicals to turn India into a Hindu nation.

Christians Under Attack

t was perhaps one of the worst attacks on Christians ever in India's history. Last month, hundreds of Hindu radicals destroyed more than 700 Christian homes in India's eastern state of Orissa.

"The Hindu mob threatened us saying that India belongs to Hindus, Christians do not belong here," said Obed Diggal, a resident of the Kandhamal District.

Some 95 churches were demolished or burned to the ground.

"They warned us that if we rebuild the churches they would kill us; they would break our body into pieces just like they broke our church into pieces," another resident, Nabaghana Naik, said.

The man, whose group is suspected of taking part in the attacks, told CBN News that peace will come only when Christians in India stop proselytizing.

"This is my message to the Christians: Stop your conversions or you will learn a lesson from the Hindu society!" said Hindu Umasankar Acharya

Acharya didn't say what that lesson would be, but his Hindu extremist organization, Bajrang Dal often uses violence against Christians.

Bajrang Dal and other radical groups are trying to turn India into a Hindu nation- what many people would even call a fundamentalist state.

"The goal of the Hindu radicals is to destroy India's reputation as a secular and pluralistic democracy and replace it with an explicitly Hindu identity."

'Hindutva'

Ram Madhav is a spokesman for the RSS, a right-wing Hindu supremacist organization.

"Just as America belongs to Americans, Britain belongs to British, Germany belongs to Germans, he maybe a Muslim, he maybe a Christian, he maybe a Jew. Similarly, India belongs to Hindus, it is a Hindustan," Madhav said.

He claims that Hindus are the original creators of Indian culture and that they are descendants from an "Aryan" race. All others are "aliens" or "invaders". These and other extremist views form their ideology known as "Hindutva".

"Hindutva ideology is basically fascist-- that propagates one nation, one language, one people, one caste, one religion," human rights activist Father Cedric Prakash said.

While the number of people who subscribe to the Hindutva ideology is relatively small, their influence and popularity are growing in Indian society.

"Many of them are in key positions, they have, if I can use the word, infiltrated the administration, the judiciary," said Tehmina Arora of the Christian Legal Association.

And they're especially angry that Indian Christians and foreign missionaries are sharing the Gospel with lower-caste Hindus known as Untouchables or Dalits.

Acharya said, "Hinduism never asks the Christians or the Muslims to convert to Hinduism, but these Christians are always trying to decrease the population of Hindus by converting them to Christianity."

Dalits make up one-fifth of India's one billion plus population. They live on the margins of society, and are often considered by Hindus as less than human. But a growing number of them are turning to Christianity.

Dr. Sajan George is a Dalit convert and a member of the Global Council of Indian Christians.

"On arrival of Christianity as they started loving God they are being treated like human beings by Christians which is unacceptable to the higher caste system." George said.

The Biggest Killer? The Silent Majority

But their conversions aren't without a cost. Indian newspapers and human rights groups document the almost daily attacks against Dalits and other Christians.

"We are asking the Lord to give us more boldness, to give us the strength to bear His name and to stand strong in the face of terrible persecution," Dalit convert Sunderson Digal said.

Analysts warn that unless these radical Hindu groups are reined-in, violence against Christians will continue.

An investigation into the attacks in Orissa showed that the violence was premeditated and that state government and law enforcement officials had prior knowledge of a potential attack - but did nothing to prevent it.

Church leaders here are asking their fellow countrymen to end their silence and to speak out on behalf of those being persecuted for their faith.

George said, "Where is the collective conscious of this country? Are they dead now or are they just being silent supporters? The silent majority is the biggest killer."

http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/305889.aspx

Christians are being forced to convert to Hinduism in order to get food, medical attention and shelter

Christians are being forced to convert to Hinduism in order to get food, medical attention and shelter

Hindu extremists in India's Orissa state killed 50 Christians, burned 1000 homes and destroyed 100 church buildings and many are still missing persumed dead during the Christmas holy days , according to a report from the All India Christian Council. An estimated 6000 Christians took refuge in a church building after extremists tried to attack their village.

"Young and healthy Christians have left their villages to flee for their lives. Children, women, [the] old and sick, who could not flee for their lives, are in great danger," John Dayal, the council’s secretary general, told International Christian Concern, a human rights group based in Washington, D.C. "Remnants are starving for the last four days, and sick are suffering without medical attention."

Christians are being forced to convert to Hinduism in order to get food, medical attention and shelter, Dayal said.

Hundreds of Christians fled to government-run relief camps, where authorities were providing food, medicine and security, the Associated Press reported. Police officers were dispatched and curfews announced in an effort to stop the violence.Hindu nationalists often persecute the country's Muslim,sikh and Christian minorities.

Orissa violence part of RSS strategy: CPI-M

Submitted by Mudassir Rizwan on Thu, 01/03/2008 - 12:56.

By IANS

New Delhi : The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) has alleged that the communal violence in Orissa was not "an isolated breakdown of law and order" but a part of an "overall strategy" by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) to subvert republican principles.

In an editorial in the latest issue of party mouthpiece People's Democracy, the CPI-M said safeguarding the republic was essential to put the country on the road to prosperity and progress.

CPI-M pointed out that last week's violence in Orissa's Kandhamal district that killed three people, allegedly unleashed by Hindu fundamentalists, came immediately after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)'s electoral victory in Gujarat.

"This anti-Christian campaign in Orissa is, thus, not an isolated breakdown of law and order. It is part of an overall strategy of the effort to transform modern India through the subversion of its republican principles."

The editorial said: "Such electoral tactics are not transitory but dovetail the larger strategy objective of the RSS - the objective of transforming the secular democratic character of the modern Indian Republic into its conception of a rabidly intolerant Hindu Rashtra."

The article said any attempt to subvert the fundamental pillars of India's constitution could create havoc for the unity and integrity of the country.

"India is a country of unparalleled diversities - religious, linguistic, cultural, ethnic etc. The only way a country of this size and diversity can be kept united is by strengthening the bonds of commonality that exist amongst this diversity.

"Any attempt to impose a uniformity on this diversity can only lead to the disintegration of this country. And, it is precisely this that the communal forces under the slogan of 'one country, one culture' are seeking to do," the editorial alleged.

The article recalled the anti-Christian campaign by the RSS and its affiliates launched in December 1998 in Gujarat, a state that is called Hindutva's laboratory and where the BJP has won election after election.

The party also noted that M.S. Golwalkar, one of the prominent leaders of the RSS, had once remarked that the three internal enemies of its pursuit of establishing its conception of a Hindu Rashtra were the Muslims, Christians and the communists.

The communists urged the Indian people to be alert and take steps to stop the efforts to communalise the nation.

"The majority of Indian people who cherish the republican foundations of modern India need to halt this communal juggernaut in its tracks. This is absolutely essential to first safeguard our republic and to put it on the road of overall prosperity and progress," the article said.

http://www.indianmuslims.info/news/2008/jan/03/orissa_violence_part_rss_strategy_cpi_m.html


MORE ON RSS AND HINDUTVA IN THE WORDS OF THOSE WHO HAVE SUFFERED IN ORRISA


http://www.countercurrents.org/chatterji070108.htm

An eyewitness account of what happened in Orissa

Please see link on the eye witness account of the horrific RSS attacks on Christmas day and Christmas eve in Orissa

http://www.theindiancatholic.com/report.asp?nid=9972


The RSS are implementing their Pure Race Hindutva agenda - which takes direct inspiration from Hitler in Orissa as they did in Gujarat.

See the two Videos below for an insight into their Evil Nazi Agenda

“Kandhamal violence premeditated”

Night curfew imposed in five more places

58 villages affected, 657 houses damaged

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. — Photo: Lingaraj Panda

curfew continues: The streets of Baliguda remain deserted on Friday as curfew is still in force for long periods, after communal violence rocked Kandhamal district of Orissa last week

BHUBANESWAR: The communal violence that recently hit backward Kandhamal district cannot be seen in isolation when the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and its affiliates have been saying that Orissa will be their next Hindutva laboratory after Gujarat, said Sitaram Yechury, senior Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader here on Friday. “It has implications for the whole country.”

After the victory of the Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party in Gujarat, RSS and Vishwa Hindu Parishad had started the process of consolidating the Hindu vote bank, Mr. Yechury told a press conference.

The very fact that the communal violence in Kandhamal started a day after the announcement of the Gujarat election results made it clear that it was premeditated, he said.

Mr. Yechury, who talked to some victims of the violence from Kandhamal here and saw photographs and other visuals depicting the damage, observed that the pattern was exactly like what happened in Dangs district of Gujarat 10 years ago.

He planned to visit Brahamanigaon, one of the worst affected villages in Kandhamal on Friday. However, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and top officials requested him not to go.

The CPI(M) leader came down heavily on the Naveen Patnaik Government for its ‘failure’ to deal with the situation in Kandhamal.

“The fact that we are being requested not to visit the affected areas more than 10 days after violence hit the district makes it amply clear that the situation was yet to turn normal,” he said.

Mr. Yechury said the administration had not been able to work effectively as the Bharatiya Janata Party was a partner in the two-party coalition government in the State, Mr. Yechury said. “This is not a good sign.”

As for the tribals’ opposition to grant of scheduled tribe status to the Dalit Christians in Kandhamal, Mr. Yechury said the latter should not be granted ST status just because they spoke the Kui tribal language. He, however, said the government should take measures to bring the Dalit Christians under the purview of reservation to put an end to the problem.

He also demanded land reforms in the region to ensure uplift of the tribals who were economically backward than the Dalits in Kandhamal.

Sporadic violence

PTI reports from Phulbani:

Night curfew was imposed at five more places in Kandhamal district following sporadic violence in the last few days.

They were Kelapada, Nuapadar, Pabingia, Bhrungijodi and Dindragaon villages.

Chief Secretary Ajit Tripathy told reporters in Bhubaneswar on Friday that night curfew also continued in the sensitive Brahmanigaon, Phulbani, Baliguda, Daringbadi and Phiringia towns, he said. The government was hopeful of restoration of complete normality in Kandhamal in the next four-five days.

The Centre has accepted the State’s request for extending deployment of paramilitary forces like the CRPF in the riot-torn district up to January 7, he said.

The latest assessment showed that 58 villages were affected and around 657 houses damaged, official sources said, adding the exercise of assessing the extent of damage was expected to be completed on Saturday.

The authorities started disbursing compensation to the affected people, Revenue Divisional Commissioner (southern division) Satyabrata Sahu said.

DEATH TOLL IN ORISSA VIOLENCE REACHES 9; TENSIONS PERSIST

Hunger, fear grip state after burning of 90 churches, hundreds of houses.

NEW DELHI, January 2 Orissa state’s Kandhamal district remains tense 10 days after a series of anti-Christian attacks began, and thousands of Christians whose houses have been burned down are facing hunger and fear.

“Local Christians who had fled to the nearby mountains fearing for their lives have begun to return, due to a high presence of police and security personnel,” said pastor Victor John, who came to Udaigiri village in the Mallikapur area of Kandhamal as a guest speaker in a Baptist church on December 24, the day the attacks led by the Hindu extremist Vishwa Hindu Parishad (World Hindu Council or VHP) began.

John told Compass that the atmosphere was still tense despite the deployment of troops.

“I am planning to leave for my home in Chhattisgarh state tomorrow morning, but it is very risky,” he said with evident nervousness in his voice. “I need prayers.”

A police official told Indo-Asian News Service (IANS) today that although there was no report of fresh violence since Tuesday morning, “the situation continues to remain critical.”

IANS also reported that at least three houses were burned down in three separate attacks on Monday (December 31) in the villages of Rabingia, Barpada and Daringbadi.

According to a memorandum submitted to the National Human Rights Commission on Monday, Christian leaders said that around nine people had been killed, close to 90 churches burned, about 600 houses torched or vandalized, and 5,000 people affected.

The memorandum was signed by Delhi Catholic Archbishop the Most Rt. Rev. Vincent Concessao, AICC President the Rev. Dr. Joseph D’Souza, spokesperson of Delhi Catholic Archdiocese the Rev. Dr. Dominic Emmanuel, and Joint Secretary of Christian Legal Association Lansinglu Rongmei, among others.

Dr. John Dayal, general secretary of the All India Christian Council (AICC), told Compass that there was no official account of how many people had died in police gunfire, mob violence or other injuries sustained during the anti-Christian violence that began on Christmas Eve.

“Many people, including young women, are still reported missing,” said Dayal, who was visiting Kandhamal district on a fact-finding mission. “We have no account, and neither do we know if the police have tried to search for them. Christians have been arrested, we learn, but there is no official word on it. Troublemakers seem to have a free hand in the entire district despite night curfew.”

Dayal complained that no church group had been allowed to visit the affected areas, so the AICC has not been able to provide even psychological support to traumatized victims.

Police asked Dayal’s team to leave Kandhamal on Sunday (December 30), but after going to the state capital of Bhubaneswar, he returned later to affected villages.

“We understand from our priests and others who are able to communicate with us that there has been bias in distribution of relief, and that many families are still not getting any assistance,” he added.

Government officials are not giving relief to women, Dayal pointed out, explaining that the women were asked to comeback with their husbands or sons. “We fear it may be a ruse to arrest the men folk,” he said.

Violent Response to Conversions

Tensions in Kandhamal began on December 24 as the Church of Our Lady of Lourdes in Brahmani village was pitching a tent for Christmas celebrations. A mob led by the VHP launched a fierce attack on Christians and their shops to protest the planned celebrations.

Local Christians say VHP leader Swami Laxmananda Saraswati, a prominent opponent of Christians for more than a decade, was behind the attack.

“It was Saraswati who instigated the mob to attack us,” said a Christian from Brahmani on condition of anonymity. “Later, Christians learned that Saraswati was coming to launch more attacks. Sections of Christians tried to stop him on the way, which resulted in a clash between the two groups, following which the VHP claimed that their leader was hurt and announced that now Christians would be attacked as revenge.”

Saraswati told media on December 25 that the reason for the violence was conversions by area Christians.

It is estimated that Christians make up 16 percent of the total population of Kandhamal district.

Pleas for Protection

Christians from various denominations across the country have held several rallies to show solidarity with the victims, and they have met with political leaders, including the prime minister, imploring them to ensure the safety of believers in Orissa.

Written requests have been submitted to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, President Pratibha Patil, Federal Home Minister Shivraj Patil, Orissa State Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Gov. Murlidhar Chandrakant Bhandare.

A group of Christian authors demanded a ban on the VHP for its reported role in the ongoing communal violence in Orissa.

The Writers’ Forum, which is meeting for its second annual meeting in Panjim in Goa state, called for the ban in a memorandum to President Pratibha Patil on Monday (December 31).

The forum accused the federal and Orissa state governments of inaction and apathy due to their inability to stop “premeditated” violence, saying the ongoing abuse had done “international damage to India’s reputation.”

Police, however, said the peculiar terrain of the area hindered their movements and efforts to reach the hot spots in time.

“Kandhamal, which has an area of 8,021 square kilometers, has only 15 police stations with a sanctioned strength of 647 personnel, who cater to a population of 648,201,” authorities said in the Hindustan Times today.