Memorandum submitted by OMASA to the President of India

To

The President of India,
Rastrapati Bhawan
New Delhi.

Sub: Proper investigation and punishment of the Orissa police for their Indifference and failure to protect the life and properties of the victims of Kandhamal violence

Dear Madam,

It may not be out of place to mention that Kandhamal violence was a black spot in a human society in which we live. The violence that perpetuated against the dalit and tribals, who chose to become Christians engineered by the Sangh Parivar. The violence against dalit and tribal Christians claimed 75 lives, scores of women molested and raped; looting and burning and destroying 6000 households and displacing and snatching livelihoods of nearly 25000 people. Worse, still hundreds of people cannot return to their own native soils to enjoy their constitutional and fundamental rights as citizens of the country. The role of police both rank and file in the violence has come under question.

a. Sister Meena, a Tribal Catholic Sister narrated before media and others of her plight that the police remained mute spectators when she was paraded and gang raped by the fanatic murderous mob. Rather, they tacitly supported as her cry for protection became futile while the culprits became emboldened in the presence of the police to carry out further crime. The incident continued for hours and whole day. Worse, still, she was being pressurized not to state the facts by the police officials as mentioned in her press conference.

b. When the nun gang rape case came to light, after two months, the state government woke up and Mr.Naveen Patnaik, Chief Minister, Orissa ordered the collector and superintendent of police, Kandhamal to assess and give the report of gangrape of Sister Meena in K.Nuagam, Kandhamal. The joint report of District Magistrate and Superintendent of Police of Kandhalmal corroborated the news report resulting in the suspension of five police persons. (News item published in the daily Oriya newspaper “Sambad” Dt 01.11.08). It reflected the role of police personnel.

c. During our visit to Kandhamal camps and villages, we came across several affected people, who had narratives as how police remained mute spectators in a way encouraging the perpetrators.

To cite a few examples; in Dibya Jyoti centres and Jana Vikas, in K.Nuagam, Srasanada Tuberculosis centre in Telapally under Phiringia block run by Missionary charity where a platoon of the police personnel was stationed. The administration had been informed of the possible attack on Gadaguda and Rudangia gram panchayats and police forces were stationed within 15 minutes, yet the people are killed and hundreds of households burnt to ashes as late as October 30th, 2009.

d.The then Orissa Home Secretary Sri. Tarunkanti Mishra admitted that people had lost faith on the local administration and the same to be restored. Why the people lose faith in the administration? (News item published in the daily news paper “Samaj” Dtd 3.9.08)

e. The inquiry commission for Kandhamal violence justice Sj Sarat Chandra Mohapatra has made Police and administration responsible for the Kandhamal violence. (Daily newspaper “Sambad” Dtd 2.7.09).

f. The delegates under the leadership of Archbishop Dr. Raphael Cheenath, SVD demanded for CBI inquiry, since, for his people it was hard to trust the local police personnel and administration on their action. Hence, later on the Archbishop handed over a memorandum to the Chief Minister, Orissa (Published in the daily news paper “Sambad” Dtd 11.11.08)

g. Sri. A.K. Upadhyay IPS now working as DIG (Training) in Bijupatnaik state police Academy, has written a letter to the Director General of Police while marking copy to different high ranking officers of the state Government including the Home Secretary, Orissa. He accuses and names 13 Indian Police Administrative officers including the then Director General of Police, Mr.Gopal Nanda of dereliction of duties in protecting the life and properties of the dalits and tribals especially those who chose to become Christians in Kandhamal. He is bewildered to note that the officers of this kind are rewarded with awards for their services. (Published in the daily Oriya newspaper “Dharitri” Dtd 03.9.2009). The allegations of Mr.Upadhyaya are very serious in nature and it corroborates what the victims were apprehending and experiences.

h. The state government went on claiming that the situation is normal and was indifference to protection of dalit and tribal, who chose to become Christians for seven months. In 1999, Graham Staines and his two minor sons were brutally burnt alive by the Bajrang Dal under the leadership of infamous Dara Singh. The then central government knew the fact, but responded to it in a lukewarm way. The then central team of three prominent central ministers; George Fernandes, Murali Manohar Joshi and Naveen Patnaik. They called it as International Conspiracy and thus, tried to escape from their responsibility. This is the indifferent and careless tendency of the central as well as state government while innocent citizens lose their lives and properties at the forces of fanatics.

Taking the total stock of situation, we may reach a conclusion that the Kandhamal violence was deliberate and intentional in close nexus with some section of police administration in particular and local and state administration in general.

There are reports of certain government officials were actively involved in this carnage. The blood sucking fanatics and criminal elements got a free hand to perpetuate the violence of all forms; looting, arsoning, molesting and raping, burning and destroying the houses, institutions and worship places and murders of barbaric kinds unheard of on the helpless victims.

The Sangh Parivar elements made good use of the state machinery to eliminate the indigenous dalit and tribals. The state has failed its duty to protect life and properties of the citizens.i. More importantly, no other person in a country knows about the security and role of police than a home minister of a country. Home Minister of India, Sri P. Chidambaram after his visit to Kandhamal, who made a study and came to conclusion. It is total negligence. He has had no option, but squarely blamed the state police for its failure to prevent the attacks by mobs on Christian community. He said, “The police have failed to give protection to Christian people of Kandhamal. They have failed completely.”

In the above background a detail enquiry is the necessity in order to bring the facts to the limelight in the fairness of the administration and justice. It would be highly appreciated if the matter would be taken up with the CBI for the better and impartial investigation.

We demand a white paper on the role of police and administration in the violence covering all the records of verbal and written instructions and decisions of the police maintaining law and order in Kandhamal from the beginning till day; receiving complaints, registration of the cases, enquiry and charge sheets of cases, attempts and successes in arresting the culprits.

We, therefore, request to treat the matter as serious one and look forward the immediate action on unearthing the role of police and administration in nexus with the criminal elements to perpetuate the violence within three months.

Yours faithfully

Sukhdev Behera
President
Orissa Manavika Surakhya Abhiyan(OMASA)
Plot No.2297, Jayadev Vihar, Nayapalli, Bhubaneswar 751013, Odisha,
E- mail: omasaorissa@gmail.com