NEW DELHI, INDIA, December 27. 2007: The violence that has wracked India’s eastern state of Orissa over the past few days seems, at first glance, to be purely religious. On Christmas Eve and Christmas day, Hindu nationalists in the Kandhamal area attacked churches and convents and set fire to houses belonging to Christians, killing one person and injuring at least two dozen more. Since then, more than forty Christian houses have been set ablaze despite curfews and increased police patrols. Local Hindus say the violence began after Christians attacked a Hindu leader. Christians say the attacks — the latest in several bouts of religious violence that have plagued the state over the past few years were sparked by church plans for a performance to celebrate Christmas.
India’s nationalist Hindu groups and political parties allege that Christian groups are forcing Hindus to convert against their will, in an effort to change the nature of India.
As with most communal violence in India, this latest explosion of hatred is the result not only of religious differences but of a tangled intersection of political power, communal prejudice and the injustices of Hinduism’s archaic caste system.