BY AJAY KUMAR SINGH
BHUBANESWAR: Panic has spread among Christians in the Kandhamal district of Orissa after a Hindu radical outfit announced plans to hold rallies on Christmas day.
“We are frightened. Please do something,” pleaded Kartika Nayak, a Christian youth in Barkhama village that witnessed anti-Christian violence during Christmas 2007.
Nayak was among those accused of murdering Khageswar Mallick, a Hindu tribal, on Christmas day that year.
On Sunday, Lambodar Kanhar, leader of Kandhamal Kui Samaj, told reporters that his group would hold the rallies to honor Mallick.
Local Christians say Hindu radicals have held closed meetings and distributed leaflets asking people to observe the “memorial day.”
Kartika says Mallick was wounded while pulling down a church and Hindu radicals had taken him for treatment. However, Mallick died under suspicious circumstances and “we are blamed for that,” Kartika told ucanews.com on Dec. 20.
Bipra Charan Nayak (no relation), convener of Kandhamal Survivors Association, recalled that Kanhar had called for a general strike on 2007 Christmas in the district.
“It resulted in violence that killed three Christians and torched 750 houses and 115 churches, convents and dispensaries,” he said.
Bipra said Christians fear the cycle of violence would recur in this Christmas season if the administration failed to act.
Umesh Nayak (no relation), a local Christian leader who was part of the district collector’s peace meetings, says government assurances do not assuage Christians’ fear.
He recalled that Kandhamal experienced seven-week anti-Christian violence starting August 2008 despite promises of safety from the federal minister, who visited them in relief camps in that January.
Itikera Sunamajhi, a tribal leader, said they do not want December 2007 repeated. “Definitely, there is a fear among the Christians. We have told the collector about it and the administration has assured us that it would take necessary measures,” he told ucanews.com. UCAN
Karnataka urged to drop ‘unjust’ prosecutions
BY FRANCIS RODRIGUES
MANGALORE:A Church delegation has asked the Karnataka government to withdraw “unjust” prosecutions registered against Christians in the southern Indian state.
Bishop Aloysius Paul D’Souza of Mangalore on Sunday led the delegation to present a memorandum to state chief minister B.S. Yediurappa in the presence of L.K. Advani, former federal home minister.
The two leaders of the pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP, Indian people’s party) were in Mangalore, a Christian stronghold in the state.
The party has ruled Karnataka since May 2008.
That year, there were at least 24 attacks on Church institutions and Christians. The police registered a number of criminal cases against Christians when they protested against the attacks.
Bishop D’Souza told ucanews.com today that former state home minister V. S. Acharya had promised to withdraw the cases when another Christian group met him in Bangalore, the state capital, a week earlier.
Father Onil D’Souza, who coordinates diocesan proceedings on the attacks, said the memorandum noted that criminal cases registered against 199 Christians. Cases against 22 persons were withdrawn.
“Our agenda was to present the memorandum to the chief minister but we included a courtesy visit to Advani,” the priest added.
Father D’Souza said the chief minister assured the delegation to withdraw the cases, but asked them to wait until a government that probes the attack submits its report.
Bishop D’Souza said the BJP leaders expressed surprise that Mangalore diocese alone manages more than 350 educational institutions. UCAN