By TwoCircles.net news desk,
Mumbai: The Centre for Study of Society and Secularism has condemned the violence perpetrated by Vishwa Hindu Parishad and other Sangh Parivar organizations in the Kandhamal district of Orissa, targeting Christian community, and demanded a CBI enquiry.
The violence has incessantly continued since August 23 and is now spreading now spreading to neighbouring Jeypore in Koraput and other districts and also to Madhya Pradesh, says a statement by the organization.
The number of affected persons is shocking to say the least. 300 villages were burnt, 4,014 houses were destroyed and 50,000 Christians are hiding in Forests fearing forcible conversion or having to face violent attacks, including the prospect of being killed. Even orphanages and other institutions run by Christians and serving the poorer and deprived sections were not spared. About 25 persons have been killed, including a Hindu girl burnt to death working for a Christian orphanage. Shamefully, a nun was gang raped, priests and women personnel have been humiliated, beaten, tortured, some nearly to death.
Asghar Ali Engineer, Chairman of the Centre for Study of Society and Secularism, said the State has utterly failed in protecting the vulnerable and innocent sections. The police were either absent or were acting as onlookers. Following the murder of Laxmanananda Saraswati, allegedly by Naxalites who have claimed the responsibility for killing him, even a naïve layman could have predicted that there would be retaliatory attacks against Christians as Laxmanananda had earlier abetted several attacks against the community in Kandhamal district.
The police, however, did not take any effective action to protect the minorities. No action was taken against the culprits during the Christmas of 2007 as the lawless Sangh Parivar enjoyed impunity due to the fact that BJP is a coalition partner in the state government.
The organization has demanded that immediate action be taken against all those who have participated, conspired, aided or abetted in the anti-Christian orgy in Orissa. The entire investigation should be handed over to the CBI and the guilty punished through fast track special courts. The victims of violence should be adequately compensated on the lines of victims of anti-Sikh violence in Delhi in 1984, demanded the organization.