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Dear prayer partner,

Please do pray for ORISSA  situation. 

Orissa faces strong religious persecution ………..

While Kandhamal was still recovering from it’s 2007 December wounds, yet another much stronger and sever persecution hit entire Orissa challenging the practice of our faith in a so called secular India .

The persecution raised with the killing of Swami Laxmananda Saraswati a senior leader of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and his four associates in his monastery on the 23rd of August, about 07:30 p.m. in the evening. Though it is not yet clear who killed Swami and for what reason, but the preliminary Police report was that Swami is killed by the Maoists who sometime ago warned him to leave Kandhamal making him responsible for the disturbed situation in Kandhamal over the years and there threatening letter was also found. Also as per the Police report Swami was killed by AK-47 which is not at all a common weapon to be used by any ordinary person and that too also by any body from Kandhamal.

Swami throughout his life was against conversion, cow slaughtering and therefore gave strong leadership against the said concerns often leading to conflict between Hindus and Christians going up to the extend of communalism and even loss of life. The most recent incident was attack on the Christians during the last Christmas leading to burning of 95 churches, 730 houses and death of 4 persons.

Therefore, the immediate accusation fell on the Christians alleging them with charges of murder of Swami and his four associates. Adding fuel to fire Swami’s body was taken in procession throughout Kandhamal to gain public sympathy which provoked people to outrage with a great emotion to destroy the Christians and the churches in Kandhamal. After Swami’s body was carried through all over Kandhamal it was cremated in the evening and a condolence meeting was held in on the site to further provoke the people in the presence of Mr. Pravin Tagodia, another national VHP leader.

Right after the meeting on the 24th night itself people moved with weapons, petrol, kerosin, clubs etc to destroy the villages, churches and to kill people. The violent mob moved in Raikia, G. Udaygiri, Nuagaon, Baliguda, Tikabali, Phulbani and in several other villages in Kandhamal. On the 25th morning there was news of burning of houses, churches and killing of Christians from all over Kandhamal. In most of the places the local administration was nothing but silent observer to all the happenings. The mobilized violence further spread to all over Orissa destroying the community and churches and murder of innocents. Today entire Orissa is under tension and fear.

Murder of innocent people

As per the received information till now near about 30 people have been brutally killed either burnt alive or cut into pieces. Some of the confirmed names which reached us are as follows;

At Tiangia (Raikia Block)

At Bakingia

At Gondagada

At Totohma

At Baliguda

At Barakhama

At Petapanga

At Kanbagiri

At Rupagaon in Tikabali area

 Mr. Gayadhara Digal

3 other persons at Barakhama whose names are not yet known and several others whose names are also not yet confirmed

More than 40 churches are already ransacked, burnt and smashed. The churches outside of Kandhamal are in Bargarh district, Bolangir District, Gajapati district. The churches in Bhubaneswar , capital of Orissa were also attacked.

Apart from this there are several small and big incidents of burning, beating and smashing of houses in all over Kandhamal and other parts of Orissa.

Re-conversion:

Where ever the fanatics have attacked they forced people to be reconverted into Hinduism. Several villages in Kandhamal, where ever the fanatics have murdered they forced the remaining villagers to be Hindu immediately and entrusted them further to destroy their own churches. They are further instructed to murder their own family members if they do not become Hindus.

Case stories:

Case Story 1:

Mrs. Kamalini Naik’s husband was asked to become a Hindu for which the fanatics threatened to kill his mother. Seeing his mother under their grip Mr. Naik denounced his faith. Then they called his wife Kamalini Naik who was 7 months pregnant. She strongly stood for her faith in Christ and immediately the fanatics cut her into pieces and her one and half year son in front of her husband and other Christians.

Case Story 2

Rev. Gurubandhu Sanseth, Pastor of Baliguda Baptist Church was warned by his Hindu Land Lord on the plan of attack on him as the violent mob approached to his house. The Land Lord agued with the attackers and pleaded for the life of Rev. Sansseth was without vein. Then the Land Lord said they must kill him first before they kill Rev. Gurubandhu. With the strong persistence the attackers went back and planned to kill Rev. Gurubandhu when he would alone come out from the house or they would wait till the night and attack him when every body will fall asleep. The Land Lord knew that Gurubandhu’s life was not safe and therefore he advised him to escape when it becomes dark. Gurubandhu with his wife with two small children out of one just 3 months old escaped in the darkness through the back door and bushes. They ran for their lives to the forest which was about 3 kilometers away from their rented house. Finally they reached an orphanage just near the forest where they thought they could spend the night. While Gurubandhu’s wife and children took shelter in the Orphanage Gurbandhu had to hide in the forest as the attackers were in search of him. On the next day suddenly when they heard some people are coming towards the orphanage Gurubandhu went inside a ditch and his wife with two children hid behind the orphanage. In the evening they moved to another believers house as their lives were safe in the orphanage. This house is also close to a hill and forest where they think they can run for their lives if they get any information. Today they are waiting to leave Kandhamal permanently when the situation becomes normal.

Case Story 3

Rev. Abhiram Keshari Singh, the Coordinator for O.M. East India was on his visit to Kandhamal and stayed at his in-laws place in Raikia on the 23rd of August. On the 24th he with other villagers had to run to the forest to save their lives. For 3 days he was in the forest and was hardly able to be in contact with his family back at Balasore. During these nights every next moment for him was to wait for the possible attack.

Each village and heroes of faith have their own stories which are not known at the moment. But many have stood strong in their faith even if they had to give their lives. 

Issues:

Now the main issue is no more communalism or clashes between two groups of people. But it is freedom of Christian’s faith under stake. This is purely atrocity, fundamentalist attack of the majority on the minority to force the minority. It is extreme of the lawlessness even in the post modernism. The issue is not Hinduism but mere political game played by RSS and its Sangh Parivar, which is threatening people of other faiths and tarnishing the true Hinsuism.

(Most of the information in this report are secondary information, collected over phone from the people from Kandhamal and some through news from the TV).

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