Kandhamal violence is not communal, speakers

Bhubaneswar: (visakeo)-Kandhamal violence was not communal but a case of caste conflict among tribal. Only Missionaries and some political party have turn the issue as communal, speakers while attending a seminar on Why Kandhamal is burning organized by Pragyan Prabaha here on Monday evening. Quoting the Chief Secretary and Home Secretary, they said that the number of churches are reaching at all time high in the district, which is main reason for conversion, they said. Kandhamal and Bauddh districts were carved out of Phulbani in the last decade. There were 75,800 Christians ( 8.8 per cent of the population) in the composite Phulbani district in 1991, which rose to 118,200 (11.6 per cent) in 2001. Kandhamal was carved in a manner that it encompassed almost all Christians of the old composite district. Thus, while Kandhamal has 118,000 Christians ( 18.2 per cent of its population), Bauddh district has only 239-odd Christians, they argued. Former Sambalpur University VC Pradip Chandra Tripathy, writer Bhagirathi Mahasuar, VHP State president Bipin Bihari Rath, educationist Indulata Das, Gangandhar Nanda and Bibhuti Bhusan Patnaik were among those speakers delivered their views. According to the 2001 Census, Scheduled Tribes comprise 52 per cent of the population of Kandhamal and Scheduled Castes about 19 per cent. More than 60 per cent of the Christians hail from the Pana community, which is SC, and speak the Kui language of the local Kui Vanvasis. As 'Dalit Christians' are not entitled to SC reservations, the church organisations are demanding ST status for the Pana Christians. This is because the Indian Constitution failed to properly define Scheduled Tribes and the critical issue whether converts to Christianity could be classified as STs, they added.