Rupees Three Hundred Thousand is the Cost of those died in Orissa Communal Violence

From Raj Bharat Patta's blog:

Shri. Shivraj Patil, the Home Minister of the Union Government of India, visited the violence erupted Khandamal in Orissa after 11 days of violence and has reviewed the situation over there. After his visit, he has announced a compensation of Rupees three hundred thousand as ex-gratia to each family of those killed in communal violence in Khandamal, Orissa. He also had to say that the present situation in Khandamal is somewhere between ‘normalcy and volatile’.
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in a situation, which is so volatile like this in Orissa, I envision that to achieve justice to Dalit Christians means

· To promote peace and harmony among communities of all religions in Orissa.
· To condemn fundamentalism and fanaticism in every religion, that inflicts violence and inflates the religious sentiments leading to violence.
· To punish the perpetrators of violence under law, who cause it in the name of religion & caste and in specific, in the name of religious ethos.
· To create a space and place for the Dalit Christians to come back home safely and to live in all safety and freedom, by overcoming the fear, trauma and grief.
· To initiate peace committees through inter-faith interventions in all local communities.
· To exert pressure on the state and central governments in ensuring justice through their government machinery, and make the state also accountable for failing to maintain law and order situation in the state.
· To organise a dialogue/interface between the Tribals and Dalits in Khandamal for a peaceful negotiation between the two communities.
· To enjoy the freedom of religion as granted by the Constitution of India, and to exercise faith in all freedom and liberty.
· To affirm in the richness of the people’s cultural identities, with out any dictation from external agencies.
· To assert the human rights of all people, and specifically the rights of Dalits.
· To strive for a community of transformation, a community of friendship, a community of love and a community of peace and justice.

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‘They burnt my disabled brother alive’

Aditi Tandon writes from Bhubaneshwar

346 Dalit Christians walked over 300 km through mountains and forests to escape the killers of Kandhamal.  They told the story of Motilal Pradhan’s story  that he was burnt alive by the Sangh Parivar. Ravindranath Pradhan, one of the deceased’s brothers and other  members of the family of 14 watched with helplessness the gory end their kin met. They had no time to mourn him, as rioters intensified their search for missing people. In no time, the Pradhans were in the jungles around Kandhamal, searching for protection. For four days, they slept in forests, barefoot, sleepless and hungry. Read more

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Gayadhar Digal Killed: Orissa High Court asks the state government to deploy army to contain violence against Christians

Watch Low Band

The number of people confirmed dead has risen to 21 on the fourth day of ongoing violence in Kandhamal district and other parts of Orissa. The Global Council of Indian Christians reported that more than 114 anti-Christian attacks have taken place in various parts of the state.

To continue reading various reports click here

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