01/13/2019 India (International Christian Concern) – A public hearing is to be held regarding the anti-Christian riots that swept across the Kandhamal district of India’s Odisha state in 2008. Among those attending the hearing will be Archbishop John Barwa, the Archbishop of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar.
According to Archbishop Barwa, the event offers “an opportunity to know the current status of cases” resulting from the 2008 riots. Many Christian victims have received no form of justice following the riots despite the passage of 10 years.
The 2008 Kandhamal riots still represent the worst instance of Christian persecution in India’s modern history. In August 2008, mobs of Hindu radicals swept across the district attacking Christians and their places of worship. As a result, 56,000 people were displaced, 5,600 houses were destroyed, 300 churches were burned, and 91 Christians were killed.
“In all these years, there were sporadic hearings and none ended positively,” Archbishop Barwa told Asia News in reference to the lack of justice for the Christians. Out of the more than 3,300 criminal complaints following the violence, only 820 were registered. Out of that, only 518 contained details of the attackers with merely 573 being pursued.
For interviews, please contact Olivia Miller, Communications Coordinator: press@persecution.org.
