Date:08/09/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/09/08/stories/2008090854890500.htm

Karnataka - Bangalore

‘Withdraw notices issued to institutions’

Staff Reporter

— Photo: K. Murali Kumar

Seeking justice: A nun praying during the protest organised by the Karnataka Christian Social Welfare Association in Bangalore on Sunday.

Bangalore: Hundreds of people gathered at the Mahatma Gandhi statue here on Sunday in protest against the notices issued by the State Government to Christian educational institutions which closed for a day last week to protest against the violence in Orissa. The Karnataka Christian Social Welfare Association (KCSWA), which organised the meeting, demanded that the notices be withdrawn.

The State Government “instead of supporting the action by Christian institutions, which closed on August 29 in sympathy for the victims of Orissa, has issued notices [to them],” the KCSWA has stated.

Bharatiya Janata Party MP H.T. Sangliana urged the Government to withdraw the notices, while Congress MLA K.J. George said that everyone had the right to protest. Speaking about attacks on churches and prayer houses in the State, Mr. Sangliana said that the right to worship was the fundamental right of all citizens.

The KCSWA has urged the State Government to institute a committee to inquire into the attacks on Christians in Mangalore, Udupi and Davangere and other districts and urged Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa to convene an “inter-faith meeting” to restore peace.

The association has condemned the “inaction” of the Government of Orissa in quelling the violence and in protecting minorities in Kandhamal. B.G. Koshy, vice-chairman of KCSWA, pointed out that thousands of houses had been destroyed in Orissa rendering 15,000 people homeless. The association has demanded a CBI inquiry to establish the facts and has recommended that the Army be deployed to restore peace in that State.