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Priests back ruling about Orissa probe

Police instructed to start again after calls for impartial inquiry by independent agency
Priests back ruling about Orissa probe
Published: August 05, 2011 09:16 AM GMT
Updated: August 05, 2011 09:47 AM GMT

Church officials in Orissa today welcomed a proper and fair investigation into the alleged Christian role in the killing of a Hindu religious leader and four associates three years ago. The Orissa High Court yesterday asked police to file a new charge sheet in the killing of Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati in Kandhamal. Police had previously named 14 accused in the case during an ongoing trial in a lower court in Kandhamal district, the scene of anti-Christian violence in August 2008 triggered by the swami’s killing. Father Santosh Digal, of the Bhubaneswar archdiocese, said the Church welcomes any probe that would arrive at the truth. “We are for truth,” he said, adding that he wanted the investigation to “aim at truth and facts. The culprits must be taken to task.” Maoists had initially claimed responsibility for the killings, though Christians were blamed by Hindu extremists, two of whom have called for an impartial inquiry by an independent agency. Brahmachari Chaitnya, a disciple of the swami and a witness in the case, said the crime branch had failed to look into the possible role of a local church in the killings. Chaitnya has alleged that the Church resolved to eliminate his master to restore peace in Kandhamal disturbed by opposition to attempts to convert Hindus. Father Dibyasing Parishha, secretary of the archdiocesan Justice and Peace Commission, dismissed allegations against the local Church as “frivolous” and “malicious.” The priest, who is also a lawyer, said the “false allegations” were an attempt by Hindu radicals to escape responsibility for the “gruesome carnage” perpetrated against Christians in Kandhamal. “Their blood-soaked faces will be unmasked if there is a free and fair probe,” Father Parishha said, further demanding that the probe be conducted by a national investigation agency to secure justice for the Kandhamal victims. Father Digal said he regretted several large-scale acquittals in cases related to anti-Christian violence in Kandhamal because of improper investigations. The violence sparked by the killings left more than 90 Christians dead and 50,000 more homeless. Related reports: Hindu radical charged with rape of Orissa nunSix-year-old Orissa girl identifies dad’s killerFive sentenced to life for murder during Orissa violence

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