Orissa archbishop seeks Rs 3cr to rebuild churches

Written by Writer on Tuesday, October 14th, 2008

Orissa archbishop seeks Rs 3cr to rebuild churches

NEW DELHI: A day after Orissa chief minister Naveen Patnaik declared that all was quiet in Kandhmal, Cuttack archbishop Raphael Cheenath moved the Supreme Court on Monday seeking Rs 3 crore as compensation to rebuild the demolished and vandalized churches in the communal riot-hit areas.

Disagreeing with the CM’s assessment of the law and order situation in Kandhmal district, senior advocate Colin Gonslaves told a three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan that tension still prevailed in the area and the “situation is grim”.

Accepting his plea for an urgent hearing on Raphael’s fresh application seeking Rs 3 crore compensation for rebuilding the churches which were demolished during last year’s Christmas-eve communal flare-up, the bench posted it for hearing on October 17.

Demanding a CBI probe into the gangrape of a nun in Kandhmal during the riots, the archbishop wanted central paramilitary forces to give protection to NGOs and charitable organizations working under him and doing relief and rehabilitation work in the disturbed areas.

He also sought Rs 5.5 lakh to the kin of each of those killed in the riots and a house building compensation of Rs 60,000 to those whose houses were damaged or torched by miscreants. The archbishop has sought a direction from the court to the Centre to carry out an independent probe to ascertain and bring to book those behind the communal trouble in Kandhmal.

The apex court had permitted NGOs and missionaries to provide relief and rehabilitation in the communal riot-affected Kandhmal district of Orissa where a large number of churches and members of Christian associations had faced mob fury on Christmas eve last year.

The communal riot took a gigantic shape in the aftermath of the killing of Swami Lakshmananand at Chakapad in Kandhmal district on August 23.

It was on the archbishop’s petition that the Orissa government had given an undertaking to the Supreme Court to stop VHP leader Praveen Togadia from leading a procession throughout the state with the ashes of Lakshmananand and had promised to take stringent action against the rioters.