Beat gong and blow conch on Christmas in Orissa: Sangh outfit

Bhubaneswar , Dec 20 A Sangh Parivar outfit today called people of Orissa to"blow conch and beat gongs on Christmas"after calling off the proposed state-wide bandh. " People have been asked to beat gongs and blow conch shells from 5.30 pm-540 pm on 25th December to protest the state government&aposs failure to arrest the culprits who killed VHP leader Laxmanananda Saraswati,"president, Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati Sradhanjali Samiti, Ratnakar Chaini said. " This will ring as a warning bell for the government,"he said, adding the bandh was called off following a request of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. Patnaik reportedly said to them that given the complexity of the case, arresting the culprits require some more time. He, however, said the outfit had kept its option open to go for a democratic peaceful agitation depending on the situation. soure ....................... Fears of new anti-Christian violence in Orissa Saturday, 20th December 2008. 12:41pm By: Judy West in Religious Intelligence Dr Joseph D’souza, AICC President, said: “The climate of intimidation and fear among Christians continues in Orissa. Although we hope the state and central authorities act to protect thousands of innocent victims and prevent future mob violence, we’re deeply worried. We are appealing for preventative action through all legal avenues.” As we reported yesterday, the subject was raised in the British House of Lords. Earlier, on Dec. 10, 2008, the United States Congressional Task Force on International Religious Freedom held a briefing titled, "The Threat Religious Extremism Poses to Democracy and Security in India: Focus on Orissa." Witnesses included Vishal Arora, an independent Indian journalist who contributes to this site; Dr Angana Chatterji, Associate Professor of Social and Cultural Anthropology at California Institute of Integral Studies; Angela Wu, International Director at The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty; Sophie Richardson, Advocacy Director for Human Rights Watch's Asia Division; and Joannella Morales with the State Department's Office of International Religious Freedom. The AICC briefed two of the panelists during their recent visits to India. Dr D’souza said: “We are hopeful that our great democracy can resolve these issues by itself, but at the same time we welcome the interest of nations friendly to India and citizens of goodwill from across the world who believe in human rights and religious freedom more