Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
New Delhi (Agenzia Fides) - "The Indian Union government has finally decided to act, bringing forward a Bill to prevent minorities and inter-community violence. In particular, in the last 40 years, Christians have been victims of a campaign of hatred and violence, often supported by institutions, " John Dayal says in a message sent to Fides, a human rights activist and President of" United Christian Action ", an organization that welcomes lay Christians involved in the battle to protect the rights, for the protection of Dalits, for the promotion of Christian minorities. Dayal is a member, with two other Christian delegations of the National Advisory Council, the body - under the leadership of Sonia Gandhi – who came up with the draft law called "Communal Violence Bill, which will undergo Parliament 's final approval, probably at its meeting in July (see Fides 27/5/2011).
According to official data sent to Fides and published by the Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, there were at least 3,800 clashes of intercommunity violence against ethnic minorities, religious or cultural reasons reported in India in the period 2004-2008. The highest incident of such violence was the one in Orissa in 2008, followed by Madhya Pradesh with 131, Utter Pradesh with 114, in 109 Maharashtra with 109 and Karnataka with 108:, about half of them against Christians, the rest against Muslim communities. In all these incidents, "the central government was criticized for inaction," notes Dayal. "Therefore, we need to address the entire question of impunity on how to hold politicians, police and bureaucrats responsible for their acts of commission and inaction before, during and after acts of communal violence." he says.
For this reason the law provides for the establishment of a National Authority for inter-religious Harmony that will monitor the local situation, and gives extensive powers in the central state to intervene in cases of violence occurring in the different states of the federation. Important - Dayal points outs to Fides - is the decision to establish appropriate compensation for the victims and to provide certain penalties for perpetrators of violence to public officials who encourage them, tolerate them or do not stop them
Meanwhile, the Hindu extremist groups and the ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have launched a campaign of opposition to the law, calling it "discriminatory" because it is aimed at protecting only the Christian and Muslim minorities. "This is not true - John Dayal argues - the law protects all minorities, whether religious, linguistic, cultural or ethnic background. We have reminded members of the BJP that the Hindus are a minority in seven states in India (Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Mizoram, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Arunchal Pradesh) and that the law will also protect them. "
The measure - he concludes - "is referred to art. 355 of the Constitution (which provides for the intervention of the central government in cases of conflict and disturbance to social peace) and wants to recall that violence is not inevitable, and can find no place in a functioning democracy, in a multicultural society in a nation that has become a world economic power, as modern India. " (PA) (Agenzia Fides 05/30/2011)
