Herald, Editorial, 16 Sep 2008
And now, Karnataka…
The ongoing communal violence against Christians in the Kandhamal
district of Orissa and the Bajrang Dal-led attacks on Christians in
Dakshina Kannada, Davanagere and Chikmagalur districts of Karnataka
can no longer be seen as 'spontaneous' occurences. Obviously, violence
against Christians seems to be part of a new, sinister offensive on
the part of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and its militant wing, the
Bajrang Dal, as well as a number of front organisations of the
so-called Sangh Parivar.
Attacks on Christians are being sought to be justified on the ground
that people are being forcibly converted from Hinduism or indigenous
tribal religions to Christianity. But there is little or no
justification for this. In Orissa's Kandhamal, for example, there was
not a single complaint of 'forcible conversion' lodged with the
police. Bishop of Mangalore Dr Aloysius DSouza has clarified that not
a single case of conversion has been reported in any of 158 churches
under the Mangalore Diocese.
The one common factor in both states is that the Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP) is in power; as part of a coalition in Orissa and as the
sole ruling party in Karnataka. The attitude of the Karnataka
government can be seen in yesterday's statement by Minister for Power
K S Eswarappa who, while condemning the violence, said in the same
breath that the state will not tolerate forceful and illegal
'religious conversion' in the state. He said the state government has
ordered an 'inquiry' into the incidents of violence and would not
spare anybody who was behind it, "Be they activists of the Bajrang Dal
or anybody else". However, the administration's efforts have inspired
little or no confidence in the minority community. "We don't want any
assurance. The police should act swiftly and arrest the culprits. They
have not acted in a proper manner," the Bishop has said.
Police in Karnataka have been instructed to take action against all
those who were responsible for violence as well as against any
"organisations or individuals who were found guilty of encouraging and
promoting illegal and forceful conversions from one religion to
another". Does this make any sense when the state has an
anti-conversion law, and the police are bound to take action if there
is a complaint? The fact is that there haven't been any complaints.
Former Bangalore city police chief and BJP MP H T Sangliana, who
revolted against his party and voted with the UPA during the recent
trust vote in the Lok Sabha, has clearly said: "The impression among
the people is that attacks on Christians have increased since the BJP
government came to power in the state." Sangliana debunks charges of
conversion, saying: "No one has produced any evidence."
The BJP in Karnataka is trying to wash its hands off the violence by
claiming it is the handiwork of unnamed 'miscreants' who are out to
tarnish the name of the new government. If that is the case, why is it
that the culprits are not being rounded up? What is the sense in
asking the police to crack down on those responsible for the violence
as well as those involved in 'illegal conversion'?
Now that the Union Home Ministry has sought an immediate report from
the Karnataka government about the attacks on churches and instructed
it to tighten security in the state and take all necessary steps to
deal with the situation, we hope that the violence will end.
Otherwise, the centre should contemplate taking action against state
governments that take a policy of deliberate inaction in the face of
religious violence.
--
Question everything -- Karl Marx
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