US lawmakers speak for Orissa Christians

Ashwin Krushna Dashmi, Kaliyug Varsha 5111

A group of US lawmakers have written to the Chief Minister of Orissa Naveen Patnaik calling for action against the perpetrators of violence in the communally-sensitive Kandhamal district.

In the letter released Friday, the lawmakers called for the rule of law in the eastern state which last year witnessed large scale violence against Christians following the murder of a Hindu seer.

The chief minister was apprised that many perpetrators of violence were still at large and were intimidating their victims, according to the Agence France-Presse.

"Such attacks on the fundamental freedom of religion threaten not only India’s reputation for religious diversity, but also the very stability of India’s secular democracy," the 21 lawmakers, led by Republican Trent Franks, wrote in the letter sent late last month.

"Given the recent experience with religiously inspired terrorism, we are concerned that if Hindu extremists can act with impunity toward religious minorities in India, these extremists and their ideologies will begin to affect international security as well."

The letter comes in the backdrop of a US religious panel putting the country under its Watch List.

Criticizing the Indian government for its failure to protect the rights of religious minorities, the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) gave India the Watch List designation this August.

The USCIRF further recommended the US President to call on political parties and religious or social organizations in India to publicly denounce violence against and harassment of religious minorities, women, and low-caste members, and to acknowledge that such violence constitutes a crime under Indian law.

Kandhamal district, some 200 km from Bhubaneswar, witnessed communal violence following the killing of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Swami Laxmananda Saraswati and four of his aides Aug 23 2008.

In the aftermath of the killing, over 50,000 Christians were forced to flee and scores were murdered by seething mobs. Although no communal violence has been reported from the region since October last year, few hundreds are still living in government-run relief camps.

In the letter released Friday, the lawmakers called for the rule of law in the volatile state which last year witnessed large scale violence against Christians following the murder of a Hindu seer.

Source: Christian Today India