Monday, September 29, 2008

All-community meet to restore peace in Kandhamal On Oct 2

All-community meet to restore peace

Prafulla Das

BHUBANESWAR: More than five weeks after communal violence broke out in Orissa’s Kandhamal district, the administration on Monday successfully organised a meeting of people belonging to different communities to restore peace in the region.

The meeting, attended by representatives of Hindus, Christians, tribals and Scheduled Castes, decided to hold a district-level peace rally on Gandhi Jayanthi day.

Top officials of the government, including Secretary of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe Development Department, Taradatt, and Kandhamal District Collector Krishan Kumar, attended the meeting. Representatives of various non-governmental organisations were also present. ...more

Nation: Catholic nun stripped naked and raped public
Nun was gang raped and priest brutally assaulted in Kandhamal
Parvathi Menon  The Hindu   September 30, 2008
FIRs lodged but no arrests by State government; no response from Centre; Sister Nirmala wrote to CM and PM appealing for protection to Christians
Bhubaneswar: The Orissa government has failed to take any action, under the law of the land, against those who committed bestial crimes — the gang rape of a 28-year-old Catholic nun and the brutal attack on a Catholic priest who courageously resisted their attempts to force him to participate in the atrocity. These incidents took place on August 25 at K. Nuagaon, 12 km from the Baliguda subdivision in Kandhamal district. Both victims filed First Information Reports at the Baliguda police station. Sister Nirmala, Superior-General of the Missionaries of Charity, wrote to the Orissa Chief Minister and the Prime Minister specifying the atrocities. ...more 

More attacks on Christians: 10 additional companies of para-military forces sought in Orissa

KalingaTimes Correspondent
Bhubaneswar, Sept 26: Odisha's Kandhamal district that witnessed communal violence recently is now experiencing a fresh wave of violence. At least two persons have been killed since Wednesday night, according to sources.

The blocks from where violence was being reported include Raikia, G. Udaygiri and Tikabali. The police were not able to reach many of the affected villages as the culprits had blocked the roads by felling trees.

In order to cover up its failure in Kandhamal, the state government has again written to the Centre seeking 10 companies of additional para-military forces to the riot-hit district.

A total of 43 companies of para-military forces were presently deployed in Kandhamal to assist the state police to maintain law and order.

Local people were attacking Christians and burning their houses since Tuesday evening after the police firing at Raikia.

The police had fired at a mob that pelted stone at the police station demanding release of some people who indulged in violence.

Meanwhile, the number of people at the relief camps has started swelling again with the Christian families returning to take shelter. They had left for their homes last week when violence showed a declining trend.

Many of the Christian families, who had returned from relief camps, have reportedly started reconverting to Hinduism to escape from attacks. Families not willing to return to the fold of Hinduism were leaving for distant cities and towns for their safety, sources said.  Read it all

  

Saturday, September 27, 2008

Protest in Delhi over violence against Christians

September 26th, 2008 - 6:02 pm ICT by IANS -

New Delhi, Sep 26 (IANS) A collage of faces - young students, leaders of religious minorities, Christian priests, nuns and others - gathered at the Jantar Mantar in the heart of the capital Friday to protest the violence against the Christian community in Orissa and other parts of the country.Holding banners reading “Prosecute vandalists and communal elements” and “Violence against Christians is violation of human rights”, the protesters raised their voices against the vandalisation of churches and attacks on Christians in Orissa, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh.

The National Commission for Minorities (NCM) Thursday demanded immediate deployment of paramilitary forces in sensitive areas of Karnataka and sought stringent action against Bajrang Dal activists involved in attacks on churches in the state.

In its report to the Prime Minister’s Office, the minorities panel requested the central government to ensure that protection is immediately given to vulnerable members of the Christian community.  Read

Saffron of reconversion rises in Kandhamal

Saffron of reconversion rises in Kandhamal
Soumyajit Pattnaik, Hindustan Times

Menia, September 27, 2008
First Published: 23:22 IST(27/9/2008)
Last Updated: 23:45 IST(27/9/2008)



After the anti-Christian violence, Hindu proselytisers ‘facilitating’ Sanskara - reconversion - have come to the interior pockets of Kandhamal district.

And as a signal to the outside world that they have embraced Hinduism, villagers are hoisting saffron flags atop their homes. It’s a shield to protect themselves from further attacks.

At least, this is the picture Hindustan Times found in the Menia panchayat area in Kandhamal district, where 38 persons were reconverted into Hinduism on Friday.

Bisraba Diggal of Masapadar village, who had reconverted into Hinduism, said, “Yesterday, I opted for Sanskara and stayed in my village. We took a pledge that from Friday, we became Hindus again. As part of Sanskara, I tonsured my head and observed other religious rituals.”

When asked whether it was due to the threats, Diggal replied, “It was a voluntary decision.” But a local leader said, “People like Diggal have no option but to reconvert. By embracing Hinduism, they want to buy peace.”

Reconversions, done by an organisation called the Viswa Hindu Prasar, are being done in a systematic manner. In Menia panchayat, the Hindustan Times team saw a register in which the names of all the 38 people who came back into Hinduism were written along with their fathers’ names, addresses and details about their families.

More

Friday, September 26, 2008

Church attacked in Tamil Nadu

First Published: 01:14 IST(27/9/2008)
Last Updated: 01:27 IST(27/9/2008)

Tension prevailed in Dharapuram town, 80 km from the textile centre of Erode in Western Tamil Nadu, for a while following an attack on the front portion a church by some miscreants in the wee hours early today.

The glass pane of a small square enclosure at the entrance to the St. Aloysius Church there was smashed in an incident of stone-pelting after 1 am early this morning, police sources in Erode told HT over telephone.

A statue of ‘Infant Jesus’ kept in that enclosure suffered minor damage, sources said, but there was no cause for alarm. An FIR has been registered on a complaint given by Fr. Jerome who heads the church, but no arrests have been made yet.

A similar incident was reported from Kanniykumari district down South yesterday, where some miscreants damaged a statue of Virgin Mary, in St. Xavier's Church in Nagercoil.

Read

Church properties in smaller Indian cities being sold

Baljeet Parmar and Ashwin Aghor
Friday, September 26, 2008 04:05 IST


The story so far: Churches in India hold vast lands worth several lakh crores of rupees. These lands are managed by more than 200 trusts and associations of the Church of North India. Some of these lands, particularly in Mumbai, are being sold to favoured private developers. Angry church activists say these deals are fraudulent because the lands are owned by the government and the trusts are merely custodians.

MUMBAI: Mumbai isn't the only place where church lands are sought to be sold to private developers, though the real-estate boom of the past two decades has made lands in the city the prime target. Similar deals are being struck in smaller cities and towns in Maharashtra as well as in other states.....> more

Thursday, September 25, 2008

Church in the World: It's time for the 'silent majority' to speak up: T V R Shenoy

One can understand -- and respect -- conversion. If an individual chooses to change his faith after struggling with his convictions, so be it. But going around asking others to convert, with none-too-subtle overtones of 'My God is better than your god!' is not respect but hostility. And that, let us be honest, is the tone adopted by some Christian missionaries in India. Once again, I believe that this is not true of most Indian Christians. This country has had a long history of Christians -- Catholic, Protestant, Mar Thoma Syrian Christians -- living perfectly amicably without feeling any need to convert their Hindu neighbours. Church in the World: It's time for the 'silent majority' to speak up: T V R Shenoy

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Advani for conversion debate but against ban on conversions

Advani demands conversion debate
L.K. Advani arrives in Bhubaneswar after an aerial survey of the flood-hit areas. Picture by Sanjib Mukherjee
Bhubaneswar, Sept. 24: Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha L.K. Advani today called for a national debate on religious conversion, even as he rejected the idea of imposing a ban on conversion.
“Time has come for a free and frank democratic debate on the issue of religious conversion with a view to build a national consensus against proselytization using methods of coercion or inducements or by vilifying any faith,” said the veteran leader while addressing a news conference here this afternoon.
Advani said he has discussed the issue with religious leaders and bishops and all have supported the idea of a national debate and inter-religious dialogue.
“However, a campaign against conversion cannot and must not become a campaign against any community,” he said.
“In our country there can be no justification for violence or vandalism in the name of religion,” said the BJP stalwart.
Responding to a query on the demand of Hindu religious leaders for a ban on conversions, Advani said he was against it.
“It’s true that senior leaders, including Mahatma Gandhi, were strongly opposed to the idea of religious conversion. But nobody suggested a legal ban. The matter was also discussed and debated in the Constituent Assembly, but no legal ban was imposed,” said Advani.
Conversion is banned in Indonesia, while in some other countries it is treated as a crime with provision of capital punishment, he reminded all. In India, few Congress-ruled states in the past have also enacted laws prohibiting conversion by inducement, said the former Union minister.
On the Centre threat to invoke Article 355 in Orissa and Karnataka, he said: “I will say that the two states have controlled the situation that was created. But, what happened in Nandigram?”
The senior leader pointed out to similar ethnic and communal clashes in parts of Assam, where non-Assamese people were targeted and attacked and in Maharashtra, where a single party targeted non-Marathi-speaking people, as the government watched. ....> Read more 

Open Doors USA seeks Public help for Christians in India

India - Persecution Spreads 

Open Doors USA Encourages the Public to Help...Send Email to Indian Ambassador Now
Contact: Jerry Dykstra, Media Relations Director, Open Doors USA, 616-915-4117, jerryd@odusa.org
SANTA ANA, Calif., Sept. 23 /Christian Newswire/ -- The violence against Christians by radical Hindus in India continues to spread.
While the state government says 24 people, mostly Christians, have died in the Orissa state violence, the All India Christian Council (AICC) maintained that 45 Christians were confirmed dead and five more were still missing, according to Compass Direct News.
According to the AICC, 14 districts of Orissa witnessed violence with Kandhamal as the epicenter. It reported at least 50,000 people from 300 villages have been affected by the violence, with hundreds still hiding in forests, and 4,000 houses and 115 churches burned or destroyed. Another source reports 20,000 people have been displaced, most of them huddled into squalid refugee camps.
The violence began following the assassination of a VHP leader and icon of Hindu nationalism, Laxmanananda Saraswati, and four of his disciples in Orissa's Kandhamal district on Aug. 23. Although Maoists claimed responsibility for the murder, the VHP put the blame on local Christians, saying they killed him because he was resisting conversion of Hindus to Christianity.
Given the ongoing violence against Christians and the lack of an adequate and decisive response of the authorities to protect the Christians, Open Doors is holding the Indian government accountable. Open Doors is urging the government to do its utmost to restore peace and stability in the region. Open Doors is also asking supporters to join in a advocacy campaign to help the thousands of suffering Christians in Orissa.
Open Doors is asking supporters to Email the Indian Ambassador to the U.S. Ronen Sen to ask him to provide adequate protection for Christians in Orissa and to ensure justice and compensation to the victims of the violent attacks.
An estimated 100 million Christians worldwide suffer interrogation, arrest and even death for their faith in Christ, with millions more facing discrimination and alienation. Open Doors supports and strengthens believers in the world's most difficult areas through Bible and Christian literature distribution, leadership training and assistance, Christian community development, prayer and presence ministry and advocacy on behalf of suffering believers. To partner with Open Doors USA, call toll free at 888-5-BIBLE-5 (888-524-2535) or go to our Website at www.OpenDoorsUSA.org.


Read it all  

Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Television Evangelists attack other religions and display converts as trophy.

An Indian member of NIFCON (the Network for Inter Faith Concerns for the Anglican Communion) offers the following reflection on the current problems in India:

Christians are also accused of creating fear among non-Christians to convert them to Christianity i.e. with threats such as you will not go to heaven if you do not follow Christ.. It is a big theological challenge how to be Christians without such theological claims. When one of the churches was attacked during the worship services, some of the attackers specifically told the priest not to preach Christ as the only way; he should preach about other ways too. It is clear that underlying many of these criticisms of Christians is the desire to unite Hindus emotionally and turn their anger into votes.

However it is true that there are problems within Christian circles as well. The work of the mainline churches in India is undermined by television evangelists who regularly attack other religions and display converts from Hinduism as a kind of trophy. There are four or five such cable channels in India running 24 hours a day- seeking to present many kinds of extremist material as the Christian message.

Read it all 

Link to Anglican Communion Official website

Link to Organiser

Monday, September 22, 2008

Kandhamal refugees go on hunger strike


Mon, 22/09/2008 - 5:29pmRefugees in Kandhamal relief camp on hunger strike

More than 25000 refugees are on a hunger strike demanding justice, peace and normalcy. Thy refused to have breakfast and lunch today and warned that they will not take food till the administration gives them justice. 62 Christians were martyred in the worst ever communal riot after the killing of swami kakshmananda Saraswati by alleged Maoist. Thousand of houses and hundreds of churches and Christian institutions were destroyed and damaged in the...>link

Sunday, September 21, 2008

Online petition to the Prime Minister of India against the violence in ORISSA

To sign an online petition to the Prime Minister of India against the violence in ORISSA click or copy this link and VOTE:--http://www.petitiononline.com/mod_perl/signed.cgi?LJ092008&

Friday, September 19, 2008

End fraudulent conversions of Dalits and Tribals: Poor Christian Liberation Movement (PCLM)

As the menace of conversions is perpetuated with the receipt of foreign funds, the Poor Christian Liberation Movement (PCLM) has steadfastly demanded that the church utilize all foreign funds exclusively for the welfare and uplift of poor Christians who are suffering from terrible discrimination within the community. Indeed, this is the reason why PCLM has been petitioning the Government of India not to appoint Bishops, priests and nuns to official Commissions and Committees, and instead appoint ordinary Christians.    The church annually receives so much money that we want the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI) and the National Christian Council of India (NCCI) to set up a Rs. 1000 crore “Dalit Christian Development Fund” to ensure the integrated social and economic development of this huge populace that was lured to Christianity on the promise of a better life. 

Jabalpur Church set on fire by Dharm Raksha Sena, a new terrorist outfit

New Terrorist Groups are Coming Up Under BJP Rule.  Besides Bajrang Dal, Shri Ram Sena in Karnataka, Dharm Raksha Sena in MP
» 09/19/2008 17:30 INDIA Hindu radicals set fire to Jabalpur cathedral, threaten new attacks in Madhya Pradesh by Nirmala Carvalho Dharm Raksha Sena groups dare parish priest to stop their action. More destruction is planned. Violence is tied to BJP election campaign. Gathering is to take place tomorrow, bringing Christians, Muslims, Sikhs and moderate Hindus together in Vijayawada (Andhra Pradesh). Bhopal (AsiaNews) – A group of Hindu extremists have set fire to Jabalpur’s Sts Peter and Paul Cathedral. Mgr Gerald Almeida, bishop of the diocese of Jabalpur, said he received threats announcing more attacks.
The attack against the cathedral occurred yesterday around 8.15 pm. Eyewitnesses said they saw three people fleeing the church area on motorbikes at high speed. After that they eventually realised that the building was burning. The fire destroyed the altar, the statues of Sts Peter and Paul, a Bible, missals, crosses and other precious holy items. This is the third time in two weeks that a church has been set on fire in Madhya Pradesh. The other incidents took place in Ratlam and Indore district. A few days ago a convent of Carmelite nuns was attacked in Banduha. In these cases police blamed Christians for the attacks even though all the evidence suggests that they are part of a wider anti-Christian campaign led by Hindu extremists that began in Orissa and that is now spreading to other Indian states. For Fr Davis George, principal of the St. Aloysius College, the Hindu fundamentalist origin of these attacks is confirmed by the fact that “in all these cases members of the Dharm Raksha Sena were involved. Led by Yogesh Agrwal, the members of this group introduced themselves yesterday morning to Father Rocky, the cathedral’s parish priest, and threatened to burn to church, daring him to stop them, if he could.” As soon as news of the fire spread, at least 3,000 faithful gathered in and around the church, demanding justice, blocking downtown streets. According to Marko Anthony, joint secretary of the Madhya Pradesh Joint Christian Forum (Madhya Pradesh Isai Mahasang), the “police knows the culprits, but is protecting them. We shall not allow all this.”  ...>More

V. S. Acharya, Home Minister, Karnataka, blogs on Mangalore violence



The pattern of any violence in Mangalore follows a pattern: some issue- blown out of proportion by interested elements- outrage in some community- logic takes a back seat- arson/ riot/ looting/ damage to public property / attack on police follows...when culprits are arrested- a team of oppostion leaders/ intellectuals parade in the city/ hospitals/ media demanding for CBI enquiry, release of all arrested and resignation of all concerned !
Alas! the poor common man does not understand the designs of these "out of power" politicians!

Please think reasonably, comment responsibly. 
Raised voices/ abuses/blame game/ rumours have already caused enough damage, so there is no need to pollute the cyberspace with those! 
(those who are commenting from the middle eastern countries(UAE), pause and think...would you ever dream of touching a Police officer? leave alone snatching wireless set/ loot a police jeep/ burn a police bike)





A day after the Centre warned the state governments over attacks on churches and Christians, Karnataka government on Friday threatened the groups leading the attacks.

Karnataka's Home Minister V S Acharya has told NDTV that they will not allow the Bajrang Dal to take the law into their own hands.

The Centre on Thursday decided to invoke the Constitution to issue warnings to the Karnataka and Orissa governments after a series of attacks on churches and Christians.(Watch)

There were reports that the members of the Sangh parivar like the VHP and Bajrang Dal are carrying out these attacks with the tacit approval of the state governments.  ..more>



TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2008


Attacking a fellow human being - which religion justifies it?


photo: The Hindu

Looting a closed shop...
Food for thought...for all visitors of this blog...
Look at the photos below (advisory: disturbing images)
Some journalists were even attacked for clicking these images...
Police attacked...
Public property looted...
Police vehicles vandalised...
Storage of stones in "holy places"
What would you do, if you were in a Police uniform...in this situation?


 Why do you need stones in the cemetery?   Don`t they spare those who are resting in peace??

Love thy neighbour, stone thy police?   (look at the red soft drink crates...for throwing bottles too!)

Hiding inside a "place of worship"

Attack on Police from the terrace of the "place of worship"- professional job...check the camouflage!

May these stones rest in peace

No concern for environment, hapless trees bear the brunt...

Taxpayers money...a Police Bike...being vandalised by "peaceful protestors"

Police jeep looted by "peaceful protestors"...they are well educated, and behaved!


Road blocks...
Photo credit: mangalorean/ daijiworld/gulfkannadiga
So the pattern of any violence in Mangalore follows a pattern: some issue- blown out of proportion by interested elements- outrage in some community- logic takes a back seat- arson/ riot/ looting/ damage to public property / attack on police follows...when culprits are arrested- a team of oppostion leaders/ intellectuals parade in the city/ hospitals/ media demanding for CBI enquiry, release of all arrested and resignation of all concerned !
Alas! the poor common man does not understand the designs of these "out of power" politicians!

Please think reasonably, comment responsibly. 
Raised voices/ abuses/blame game/ rumours have already caused enough damage, so there is no need to pollute the cyberspace with those! 
(those who are commenting from the middle eastern countries(UAE), pause and think...would you ever dream of touching a Police officer? leave alone snatching wireless set/ loot a police jeep/ burn a police bike)
(If you have the integrity to make a responsible comment, please leave your e mail address with your comment)

40 COMMENTS:

Shrinidhi Hande said...
Why don't the police catch few protestors who damage public property and jail them- make them/their family members/sponsors pay the full price of the damage caused else don't release them. Police can have photo/video evidence that this particular person has caused damage to the property. Catch few people like this and make them cough up the damage money- others will learn a lesson and think before damaging buses and jeeps next time...
bali said...
Sir as you know New Life and Bible readers evangelic organisations are publish books insulting our gods. I hope u take stern action against them. These Incidents would never have happened if these evangelic Xtians didnt try yo convert hindus
Anonymous said...
Srinidhi...there are Problems: 1. human rights activists will then wake up and create a hue and cry 2. intellectuals like arundhati roy, medha pathak will go on fasting/ strike against alleged police atrocities... 3. pseudo intellectuals write rrams of articles on how karnataka is following gujarat model etc., afterall whose tax money is it anyway?
Anonymous said...
It is really a pity these kind of things happened in Mangalore where all religions especially christians and hindus live peacefully as one family since years.I dont think there is a single christian who do not have a hindu friend.So why this sudden violence.Even if there is conversion,why we could not sit and talk to each other and solve these issues without resorting to violence?We should consider ourselves as Indians first then only christians or hindus or of any other religious denominations.I hope and pray that all concerned leaders will get to gether and solve all these issues by dialogue as early as possible and let peaceful atmosphere of our beloved city to return to its original glory.
Anonymous said...
Srinidhi...Note that the intellectuals are already parading in Mangalore, demanding release of arrested christians! http://www.daijiworld.com/news/news_disp.asp?n_id=51251&n_tit=Mangalore:%20Citizens'%20Delegation%20Blames%20Home%20Ministry%20for%20Collapse%20of%20Law%20and%20Order
voiceofneil said...
Sir, Please dont get offended with my comments. I have been deeply hurt by whats happening in my city and hope you are too. Please do something cos you are in power. Please save my city. Please for God Sake.
Vinnie said...
this is so hilarious.. First we have a blogger who is showing and typing in only one side of the story and then we have readers who are blinded by the words and pics!!! P.S- I will be really surprised if this gets published.. Blogger adds: Vinnie, you know where to look for stories which suit you! here the discussion is on vandalism and attack on Police.
Br Valerian said...
Being a doctor by profession you know that some sickness cannot be healed by doctors of this earth but the heavenly doctor. We pray that Jesus Christ bring healing to you and your people. God Bless you
bali said...
Sir this website gives you the passages made in NewLife Chruch. http://greathindu.com/2008/09/denigration-of-hindu-gods-reason-for-christian-attack/
vijay said...
Appreciate your courage to take action on long pending issue. Money which comes from External sources may not only use for the conversion but also for destabilizing the country. Hindus are famous for tolerance, but there is a limit for tolarance. Some of the english media channels are heavily funded by chrisitn organizations outside india. Narendra modi is the most mis quoted man in Indian history. Every good word come out of his mouth is twisted for wrong reasons by english media.
ஜடாயு said...
This post has been removed by a blog administrator.
Head said...
Mr Home Minister... The first thing you should do is BAN ... BAJRANG DAL.They had no right to hit at Catholics when they claim that the conversions and indignified was written about by NEW LIFE. Can any citizen go and murder/ Terrorise someonelse for no fault of theirs? Firstly, to rule the state you should know the religions, castes and sections. If one does not know that including Yeddyurappa, he needs to resign. Blogger: comment truncated, Head please note that jumping into conclusions is worse than the original crime!
Jessy said...
Mr.HM, what about the caning and lathi charge of the police on women and children inside the church premises? What about the damage done to christen churches? Blogger: you see for yourself in the images...police were thrown stones from WITHIN the church, be responsible, before drumming up passions.
Bhandari said...
Food for thought : In many of the foreign countries, people identify themselves as Pakistanis, Americans, Kuwaitis, Israelis etc. Indians identify themselves as Malayalis, Tamilians, Christians, Muslims ..... Until the day comes we think ourselves one nation, subject to one law, which applies equally to one and all, perverted logic will be used by scoundrels on perverted minds to create a more perverted society.
Anonymous said...
It seeems India is becoming a nation where Hindus can do no right and Christians/Muslims can do no wrong. Jesus Christ Super Star is blasphemy/minority bashing. Saraswati riding a tiger is artistic expression. Worship of Vishnu and Shiva is idolatory. Worship of an idol of Jesus on a cross, or a a statue of benevolent Mary, or St. Joseph is the right true way of worship. Every religious group except Hindus feel pain and angst. Is there a Government in India which will dare grab the income of any Church or Mosque to share among temples in India ? Who will speak for the Hindus ?
Blogger/Editor said...
Dear Deepak It is impossible to mail individually, hence the BLOG! good to have a dialogue here! Keep writing, as told earlier, with no malice/ bias
voiceofneil said...
Sir, Why doesnt the government publicly accept the fact that the destruction was from Bajrang Dal indeed. What is stopping the Government. I would be keen to know. On the otherside, i would be really keen to see the findings of the Government in the Foreign Fund Story. Also, what needs to be clear is Getting foreign aid itself is not illegal. There should be proof that this money is being used for NON CHARITY purposes. I am sure, Sri Satya Sai Baba and Sri Ravishankar get a lot of Money from International Devotees too. Am sure they use it for spreading their faith. Blogger:as mentioned earlier, there is no lynch mob justice in governance...facts have to be ascertained, before jumping into conclusions...all of a sudden ALL catholic/ missionery associations have STARTED DISOWNING NEW LIFE!
Bhandari said...
No civilized nation on earth tolerates attacks on its law enforcing agencies, with India the honorable exception of course. I hope you are in charge long enough to make it a non-bailable offence guaranteeing at least 10 years RI for police equipment / police personell to be attacked in groups. Maybe video images will be sent to multiple recording centers, including an honest independant supervisory body, in real time to help identify the criminals. It feels good that at last we have a Home Minister who trusts his police force and supports them. Thank you.
Anonymous said...
being an indian and a hindu, i feel ashamed to see the way you are trying to progate your political agenda. as you are in a responsible position you shuold be striving to bring peace and build bridges between the communites. please do not divide our people and the communities. i have so many chritians friends who are not as you claim to be. i am the product of the christian institutiion. i have never come accross any such conversions. i know many priests who are of high learning and compassionate. why blame them for your selfish motives. what is your problem if the person is willing to change his or religion? remeber there can not be any seuch forcible conversion as you accuse of my humble request ist that you be more open to other religion and cultures as indian. be a proud indian. celebrate the diversity. do not destroy the it.
Vinobha K T said...
I do agree that no religion would justify attacking a fellow human being. Similarly, we should also agree the fact that no religion would justify attacking another religion's prayer centres.
voiceofneil said...
Thanks for your response Sir, I see your point on How the Catholics have started disowning the "Evangelical" churches For your understanding, The Church has 3 major Categories, 1. Catholics: further divided into Othodox, Syrians and Roman Catholics. 2. Protestants: Products of Reformation, LEading to the Lutheran, Anglican Churches. 3. Evangelicals: Products of Revival: Pentecostals, Baptists etc. The First 2 are more established of the 3 Churches with laws and regulations to control internal activity. The First one is Governed by a central Authority. the second one though is more local but is still organized heirarchially. The third one is a more open Church and the mostly a local body though it has affiliations with a global set up. New Life fellowship belongs to one such unit. Traditionally, The Evangelical church has been involved in the spread of the Gospel which is a Christians Primary Duty. Now that does not mean conversion. But means Showing the love of God in Deed and Word(I aggree not many do it in this world). Because of it being relatively new, a repeat of reformation is taking place now. Which basically means Catholics and protestants who find this new church more function switch over as it does not require them to change a lot of things(technically, its no conversion). Now this has lead the Catholic Church at large to be a lil scared of this movement. Hence, more than the Hindu leaders you will find more support from Catholic preists and Bishops in curbing this movement(which will help them in saving the Mass going Crowd) orelse they may see the churches empty as in the US. In simple terms, Your Government needs to excercise a lot of wisdom in dealing with this issue. The best thing to do is to sit with each of the Church Leaders and understand where are the gaps coming from. This will help you get a whole round picture of the situation. I would be glad to help you in this initiative. Just let me know....
Anonymous said...
since you are the responsible minister,let the people of Karnataka know the facts.Constitue a committee consisting of members from all sections of the society(all political parties,religious denominations,NGO's,senior citizens etc) and try to get unbiased facts.And also let every body know how many people are converted in this state during 60 years of independece.
udupiite said...
It is indeed shocking to see such stories on the blog of the Home Minister of Karnataka!! saying the attack on churches was due to conversion activities...Is this the independent/democratic India our freedom fighters dreamt about?...political parties are clearly above the integrity of the nation for you people... I dont expect this post will get published
Anonymous said...
check http://thammayya.wordpress.com/2008/09/17/real-reason-for-attack-on-churches-in-mangalore-the-truth-behind-the-news/
Anonymous said...
Some people here have a real sense of humour starting with the guy who manages the blog and put up the pics. Gosh! How else would u have got only those pics which no other people have shot! Blogger: dear sir, it is no humour, serious issue, please see the photo credits in the post(or even watermarks of web page names on photos)...they have been sourced from reputed web pages, and graciously acknowledged too! (please do not insult one of the photographers who was injured in action-he was hit by protestors)
KJ said...
I feel ashamed today.. no hindu.. or for that matter.. no indian can be so ruthlessly unjust and biased towards an issue.. i seriously dont knw whether u know the full story or not.. but going by wht i hv seen, breaking jesus's effigy in church is the most sinful thing one cn ever do.. wt if somebody barges into ur house n breaks idol of lord vishnu? christians, protecting themselves n bulding a stone wall in cemetry is understandable, evn if nt fully justified.. but breaking hurting a community's sentiments, playing with thre lord.. its somethng worse than a sin.. rather than catching those who hv created disturbances in the city (christians/hindus), catch hold of those, who have not respected a religion and made a mockery of it.. Blogger: what about the derogatory literature by New Life, was`nt it the starting point?
Nagaraj said...
Message censored due to uncivilized content. Mr Nagaraj (or whoever posing as), please use other suitable media to express your opinions
Bhandari said...
Every society has its lunatic fringe, with its public discourse an indicator of its degree of maturity. I think it odd that our loud politicians and louder media have much to say about everything, including your intentions and loyalties, but not one word about the book Sathyadarshini, the cause of all this sadness. Our secular media, Congress politicians and the various organisations "with minority welfare at heart" conveniently call this an anti-conversion issue. Again not one word about this vituperative book on Hinduism. Dr Acharya, in reply to Br Valerians post, and the many who choose to crucify you for an act not of your making, I suggest that this evening when you pray, take a line from the last true Christian, our Lord Jesus Christ and say ' Forgive them O Lord, for they know not what they do".
Anonymous said...
Regarding the disownment of New life by Catholics......Please note that diswon is a term used when u let a perosn go off whom u own (example son etc), Catholic church never owned the New life......so thers no question of Disownment what the Catholic church is saying is that New Life and Roman Catholics are 2 different things, maybe the Non christians dont know about it......so better if Non christians do their homework completle before accusing.......
Mohan H Naik said...
Hello sir,I must congratulate you for handling the situation with maturity.If all the politicians have same maturity and vision like of yours, no doubt our country will be a real super-power.We assure our support and cooperation, towards building strong India and vibrant Karnataka.God bless you and your team.
Anonymous said...
@KJ You wrote, "...breaking jesus's effigy in church is the most sinful thing one cn ever do.. wt if somebody barges into ur house n breaks idol of lord vishnu?" Read the Goa Inquisition and see how many Hindu temples and Murtis, Idols of Hindu deities were destroyed by the christians under the leadership of Francis Xavier. Hundreds of thousand of Hindus were merciless killed, burned in over 250 years of Inquisition. And that man was decorated with Saint, what a joke. A cruel mass-murderer is a saint. Search in the google Goa Inquisition and learn. Go to NE India and see how cruel way Nagas run the state, they even don't allow tiny Hindus to built temple. They call Nagaland for Christ, and nobody else. Do you christians respect other faiths? Not at all. It seems core philosophy of Christianity is hate, violence, abuse against others faiths and culture and intimidate and force then to convert. Not only Hindus, you abuse all others, Jews, Muslims, etc. Only sometime back Pope used derogatory and degrading language against Islam's Profet Muhammed. See how muslims reacted. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/5347876.stm Does your religion ever taught you to speak truth and respect others way of life?
Vinay said...
Can you make the copy of Sathya Darshini public. Why is it that hindus are the target of everybody-someone expresses himself by denigerating hindu Gods while people of his own religion create his rucus all over the world over a small cartoon. Someone else goes to rural and poor India and distributes prasad(bought from foriegn money) of some God with false claim to innocent tribals and villagers and convert them. I ask where has the punch line of a religion-LOVE YOUR ENEMIES gone. If we are your enemies I cannot see any love from your side, if we are not then why is there a voilence against us. If hindus retaliate they are fundamentalists, if some others convert people by fooling them and making them anti indians-it is constitutional right. If some others spread terrorism-media comes to the rescue with convict's mothers and all sorts of non-sense.
Vinay said...
For all the commenters who have criticized the blogger & the views of Dr V.S. Acharya, I am an Hindhu religion practitioner I read all ur comments that the photos & evidence regarding the vandelization of police vehicles etc is just one sided story, acts of violence on churches & moques shud be condemned & dealt with force, the govt is one sided, it needs to reform itself etc.. let me tell you we are the only nation in the whole world that has given powers of such magnitude to other religion's people in govt , even though its a hindhu majority. you might call you this secular country but I wont coz secular means euality to all religions, they must be equal in all rights. it shud not be that one religion is allowed to break the law & other to follow it. I regret that my country's leaders have made such terrible laws which support these things, anyway we cant change such things now. so we have to live with what we have, but please do mind there's a limit for tolerating things. please mind its our country its been called hindustan, it is called hindustan & it will be called hindustan.. if u cant accept it & follow the rules & low of the land please leave the country once in for all, we will be happy, but dont try to hurt the majority's feelings & there faith. It will some day prove very costly to you people, the day is very not far away when even our leaders start realizing things will get beyond control if we dont do something about minorities getting advantage of being a minority, they are exploiting the a majority community by using govt laws etc. Please its my humble request to all of you to stop these things like conversion & all, Its a universal secret now that you people try to convert hindus why dont you accept that. try to maintain respect for other religion too, if every hindhu starts revolting against your faults then mind you, you will have no place to hide, even you so called christian countries will not help you.. so please accept the fact & try to be more responsible in the society & in our country.. Once again I am reiterating that its our country, dont let us make to call it one day its my country & drive you off. Be carefull. & to Dr. V.S. Acharya, hats of to you sir, the good things you r doing I can recognize that very well, I have no regrets some people bark at you, just ignore them, do you good work & if you are really true to ur sense & soul, you will surely be successful in upholding the law.. Thanks a lot to open this blog & have ur view reach so many people. Here,s my mail-id as u said, Iam not afraid to leave my maid-id while speaking the truth, vinay_2003pt@yahoo.co.in
jibu said...
OUR GOVERNMENT MUST PRODUCE THE PHOTOCOPIES OF THE ORIGINAL PAPERS ISSUED BY NEW LIFE FOLLOWERS WHCH WAS SUPPOSED TO BE AGAINST HINDU GODS AND BELIEFS. HOW YOU CAN EXPECT COMMON PEOPLE TO ACCEPT THE TRUTH UNTIL PROOFS ARE NOT SHOWN TO PUBLIC? THOSE WHO ATTACK THE CHARCHES SHOULD BRING BACK THE PROOF AND THEY SHOULD DEMONSTRATE IT TO PUBLIC WHY THEY DID THAT.
Anonymous said...
Only Jesus and Christians are taught to attack the fellow human beings. Their religion is BASED ON LIES. The barbaric Christianity which has wiped 1.2 billion people in 2000 years of its savage existence,(MORE THAN NATURE COULD DO IN 300 MILLION YEARS) wiping out Mayas, Incas, Aztecs, Maoris, Gnostics, Hellinists, Jews, etc. THEY ARE BORN LUNATICS, there is no fringe in them. They are taught this in their BIB-LIE i) Holy Bible -- New Testament, Luke 12; 51-53: Jesus said: “Do you suppose that I came to bring peace to the World? No, not peace, but division. From now on a family of five will be divided, three against two and two against three. Fathers will be against their sons, and sons against their fathers; mothers will be against their daughters and daughters against their mothers; mothers-in-law will be against their daughters-in-law, and daughters-in-law against their mothers-in-law.” ii) Holy Bible, New Testament, Luke 20; 27: Jesus said: “For those enemies of mine who did not want me to be their king, bring them here and kill them in my presence.” AS FOR INDIAN MEDIA, IT IS WELL KNOWN WHO CONTROLS THE TRAITORS. ANYBODY IN KNOW OF THINGS WOULD KNOW ABOUT THE CIA CAPTURE OF MEDIA (OPERATION FALCON). As of Xtian Love, and equality, HA HA HA till now in South America 5% of WHITES CONTROL ALL THE WEALTH while the pooor Indians are left with a BIB-LIE and the torture instrument. Till now no Indian has been allowed to become the Leader in South America and the White Racist looters are planning (with backing of the head of Murder Inc., the Pope) the assasination of Evo Morales, the first indigenous population. See the site to see the real face of xtianity http://www.geocities.com/paulntobin/mission.html#america By the way sis anybody know that Pronoy Roy of NDTV is a 5 p convert
Ramya said...
Mr Home Minister, nice to finally have someone in power who can call a spade a spade. In today's political context, secular has come to mean being 'anti-hindu' and the so called majority Hindus feel persecuted by the minority appeasing govts. What I don't understand is what vested interest the media has, in suppressing facts and publishing lies ! And why doesn't the Govt. which has all this information at its disposal expose the double standards of the media ?? I hope that we see someday in the future, an India where Hindus can feel that they are not being persecuted for being 'majority'.And in this case, I hope justice is served, and soon.
Narendra said...
People who have fallen into the "secular trap" keep advising Hindus to be tolerant. But, why don't they advise the same to Christians? Does our so-called secularists believe the Christians are tolerant by birth? Take the example of conversion. For time being assume that conversion doesn't happen by coercion. Nobody (not even minority commission) has refuted the fact that Christian missionaries ask others to convert to Christianity. So, when one person asks another to change his religion, is this person indirectly telling that his religion is better than the 2nd persons religion? Is this not a way of abusing other religions? Is this not an attack on other religion? And don't you see that the first person is intolerant about other religions? Intolerance is the root cause of all religious conversions. So, the so called "Secularists" should talk to Christian missionaries and ask them to be tolerant and stop conversions. In the past we have seen how missionaries reacted when conversion was banned. It happened in Tamil Nadu and also at many places. When govt talked about banning conversions, these missionaries protested. They threatened to stop all service activities. So, that means there is link between the service activities and religious conversion. If not, why should the people doing service activities protest for banning conversion? Their ultimate motive is to convert. If Hindus can't understand these things, then they will be doomed. So, it is good that, Hindu society has started aggressively protesting conversions, atleast now.
suma said...
In order to find a solution to this problem we need to move a legislation in Karnataka called “Regulation of Religious Conversions Act” (RRCA). Whenever religious conversions take place, there is often a change of name and therefore the identity of the person. This requires changes in the PAN Card, Passport, Voter’s Identity, Ration Card identity etc.Change of religion also affects the person’s legal status in terms of property inheritence, marraige and divorce aspects. Conversion also provides many “Reservation Benefits” which are automatic financial incentives for conversion. Since “Conversion” affects the legal status of the person in the community under several laws and the community has the right to demand that there should be a legislative regulation of the process of conversion. This should include filing of an affidavit and personal appearance in a Court, advertisement for public notice, and a mandatory cooling periond of around 45 days for objections to be filed by public against the conversion. Such a process will reduce the tension in the communities. I suggest Karnataka Government to take suitable action in this regard.
Ramakrishna Lanka said...
Thank you Mr. Home Minister. It is time that this menace is put to end once for all. Let the people know that they cannot get away by insulting the religious beliefs of the people, stoning police, and then hiding in a church. They have the temerity to do what ever they are doing only because they feel that they have the backing of vociferous and biased media, ill informed public and blessings of Congress (Italian). Their confidence that they can get away with a murder needs to be broken. I am confident that under your able leadership, this can be accomplished. May god give you strength to face all the challenges and calumny being indulged in by the anti national forces. Please keep up the good work and free Karnataka of this menace.
Anonymous said...
See the actual reason why Hindus are attacking Xians. Let them preach Jesus, but that doesnot mean that they shud insult Hindus and Hindus sentiments. http://www.deccanherald.com/Content/Sep172008/district2008091690423.asp