Anti-Christian violence in Karnataka

The 2008 attacks on Christians in southern Karnataka refer to the wave of attacks directed against Christian churches and prayer halls in the Indian city of Mangalore and the surrounding area of southern Karnataka in September and October 2008 by Hindu nationalist organisations, Bajrang Dal and the Sri Ram Sena. The attacks were widely perceived by Christians in southern Karnataka to be punishment from right-wing Hindu nationalist organisations because they had been outspoken about 2008 anti-Christian attacks in Orissa, and also because the New Life Fellowship Trust (NLFT), a non-denominational Christian Church, was alleged by Bajrang Dal to be responsible for forced conversions of Hindus to Christianity.

Several isolated incidents against Christians were reported from 17 August onwards, and on 29 August some 45,000 institutions across India participated in a "prayer for peace and communal harmony" in response to the ongoing anti-Christian violence in Orissa. St Aloysius College (Mangalore) and some other 2000 Christian schools in Karnataka went on strike for varying periods between 29 August and the 5 September prior to the attacks, protesting against the attacks in Orissa, in defiance of the orders of the government who stated that it was to be a regular work day. This led to government denouncement of the Christian institutions in the state for disobeying orders and led to a Bajrang Dal demonstration outside the St Aloysius College, two weeks prior to the main attacks. The attacks began on 14 September, when a group of youths from the Bajrang Dal went inside the chapel of Adoration Monastery of the Sisters of St-Clare near the Milagres Church in Hampankatta and desecrated it. Some 20 churches or prayer halls, including Catholic and Protestant churches and temples belonging to the Jehovah’s Witnesses and other evangelical sects, and colleges were damaged in towns and villages in the Mangalore taluk and other parts of Dakshina Kannada district, Udupi district and Chikkamagaluru district. A few Christian institutions were later attacked in Bangalore and Kasaragod district. Out of frustration and anger, the Christian community responded to the attacks within hours and began protesting. In Karkala, the Catholics of Karkala deanery staged a protest on 15 September and organised a 3 kilometre silent protest march. The protestors blocked arterial city roads in their masses, especially in places such as Hampankatta, Kulshekar, Bejai, Derebail and Thokottu and rang bells in almost all the churches of Mangalore, calling parishioners to their churches. The protests led to strong police suppression with ''lathi charge''s and tear gas, making around 150 arrests and injuring 30 to 40 people. Violence broke out at the Adoration monastery as police began caning the protestors with sticks and bursting teargas shells, in return the protesters pelted stones at police, and the police pelted the stones back at them. In another place the police were pelted with stones for their failure to arrest the perpetrators of the attacks. Between 15 September and 10 October, a new wave of anti-minority attacks began against Christian communities in the Indian states of Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, New Delhi, Punjab, Tamil Nadu and Uttarakhand, as well as Muslim communities in Gujarat and Maharashtra.

The September 2008 attacks had political significance, given that the ruling BJP Karnataka state government, led by BS Yeddyurappa, were also accused of involvement and backing the anti-Christian campaigns and that the police were reported to have had knowledge of the imminent attacks but failed to prevent them. The police were criticised for their reaction to the protests and a report by a committee of human rights activists set up in the aftermath to examine the causes of the attacks claimed that they had used the event as a pretext to assault the community, rather than defend it. Justice B. K. Somasekhara of Karnataka, however, concluded that the police and government helped maintain order and were not responsible for the attacks. In response to the alleged forcible conversions of involvement, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) gave a three-month deadline for New Life Fellowship Trust (NLFT) to stop all conversion activities in Mangalore. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Mangalore declared that it would distance itself from the New Life Fellowship Trust.

In February 2011, retired Justice MF Saldanha of the Bombay High Court, was outspoken and published a report in which he described the attacks as "state-sponsored terrorism", and that the attacks were part of "communal forces" at work attacking Christian institutions on the coastal belt of India. The report and continued denial by the state government of being implicated in the attacks led to more than 100,000 Christians representing some 45 Christian denominations and secular organisations leading a silent march in Mangalore on 21 February. Following the publications of the reports and subsequent protests, the government of Karnataka announced that it would drop 338 cases against Christians who had protested in the attack, and in December 2011 a further 23 cases against Christians were dropped.

Background and cause

Mangalore has long been a major Christian centre in India. In 1526, under the viceroyship of Lopo Vaz de Sampaio, the Portuguese took possession of Mangalore and Christianity began to spread via their missionaries. Many Christians migrated to South Canara from Goa. The Mangalorean Catholics were persecuted by Tipu Sultan during his reign between 1782 and 1799 and many were forcibly converted to Sunni Islam. On 24 February 1784, Tipu rounded up 60,000 to 80,000 Mangalorean Catholics and transported them to Seringapatam. They were held there in captivity for 15 years, until the British defeated the Mysoreans at the Battle of Seringapatam on 4 May 1799, with Tipu being killed in action during the battle. Only 15,000–20,000 of those Catholics taken captive in 1784 survived. In the latter half of the 19th century, Protestant missionaries began working in Mangalore and surrounding communities, and the Vicariate of Mangalore was established in 1853. Mangalore, noted for its many churches and the strong representation of Catholics, was at one time known as the "Rome of the East". However it is also noted as a pilgrimage centre for Hindus, given its numerous Hindu temples and shrines. Between 1991 and 2011, the percentage of Christians living in India reportedly dropped from 2.7 per cent to 2.2 per cent, a declining figure which has been linked to ongoing difficulties facing Christians in a predominantly Hindu nation. In 2008, an estimated 320,300 Christians were living in the Dakshina Kannada district.

Several explanations of the cause of the September 2008 attacks have been postulated. Many Christians believe that the attacks were a direct response from right-wing Hindu organisations who were targeting the people of Mangalore and the surrounding area because they had been outspoken about persecution of Christians in Orissa. St. Aloysius College, a Jesuit institution in Mangalore, and some other 2000 Christian schools in Karnataka, went on strike for varying periods between 29 August and 5 September prior to the attacks, protesting against anti-Christian persecution in Orissa, contrary to the orders of the government who stated that they were to be regular work days. Primary and secondary education minister Vishweshwar Hegde Kageri, responding to the shutting down of the Christian educational institutions in Karnataka, had directed the public education department to issue show-cause notices to schools that had objected to the violence against Christians in Orissa. A Christian institution in Shimoga had reportedly received a notice from the education ministry of Karnataka during the strike saying, "The VHP and Bajrang Dal have conducted a protest against the closure of schools and criticised your action. They have submitted letters requesting action against you for this. In this context, you are asked to show cause as to why action should not be initiated against you for using religion as an excuse to announce a holiday and as to why permission to run your institution should not be withdrawn." State Home Minister V. S. Acharya explained the reason for the notices, "All Christian institutions are grant-in-aid institutions of the government and they should have had the courtesy to inform us before declaring a holiday. Their decision to act unilaterally cannot be tolerated." The education minister was backed by the State President D. V. Sadananda Gowda, who issued a statement in which he stated that Christian education institutions had committed a crime by declaring holiday without obtaining the state government's permission. However, the Indian National Congress (INC) condemned Hegde's statement to take action against Christian education institutions and the leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly, Mallikarjun Kharge, stated that "The minister's statement is not proper. It may lead to law and order problem in the State." Bajrang Dal proponents protested with banners outside the St. Aloysius College gates and across Mangalore on Saturday 31 August, the day after the college had closed for a holiday, chanting slogans such as, ''"Jai Mata Di"'' (Hail to the Mother) and ''"Bharat Mata ki jai"'' (Hail Mother India). The closure of the schools in Mangalore were not alone; some 45,000 institutions across India had participated on 29 August in a "prayer for peace and communal harmony" in response to the events in Orissa.

Another explanation is that the attacks were an angry response by Bajrang Dal over the allegations that the New Life Fellowship Trust were indulging in forceful religious conversion of Hindus and distribution of vulgar literature slandering Hindu gods and goddesses. Bajrang Dal claimed that nearly 15,000 people had been forced to adopt Christianity as their religion in Mangalore alone in the past year after monitoring the situation. In the book ''Satyadarshini'', written by Andhra Pradesh Pastor Paravastu Suryanarayana Rao, it was also reported that the New Life Fellowship Trust had denigrated and defamed Hindu gods, causing anger amongst the Bajrang Dal. Hindu activists also alleged that excerpts from Rao's book had been published in pamphlets to spread its influence. Mahila Parishat leader Asha Jagadish believed that the attacks were solely motivated by religious conversion by New Life and claimed that her neighbour was forcefully converted into Christianity to marry a Christian girl, further stating, "The Holy Saint School in Bangalore, where I studied up to fifth standard, did not allow me to wear ''kumkum'' or bangles according to Hindu tradition." Fr. Francis Serrao, rector of St. Aloysius College, stated that he believed the attacks were not due to conversion, but was rather a reflection of the struggle between Christianity and Brahmanism and theorised that Christian ideology and Brahmin ideology can never coexist as "Christianity propagates love and Brahmanism propagates hate."

Attacks

Incidences of violence against Christians had been reported during the month prior to the main attacks. On 17 August 2008, demonstrators performed a ''dharna'' (hunger strike) outside the DHM church in Jayanagar, Davangere and again on 24 August at Nitya Jeeva Devalaya church, burning Christian literature in both events. No complaints or arrests were made in either of the events. Three days later, on 27 August, a Christian prayer hall and its pastor in Uchangidurga, Harpanahalli taluk of the Davanagere district, were attacked, leading to eight arrests. Then on 7 September, a group of about 300 individuals attacked the Yesu Kripalaya Church in Bada, Davangere district, vandalising it and burning the Bibles. Ten people were arrested at the scene in Bada. The multiple premeditated attacks started on 14 September 2008, with some 20 churches attacked in Karnataka; of which 14 were attacked within one hour. These included Catholic and Protestant churches as well as temples belonging to the Jehovah's Witnesses and the New Life Fellowship Trust. The attacks began when a group of some 15 youths on motorbikes from the Bajrang Dal, a Hindu nationalist organisation which aims to achieve the "reversing of the invasions by Muslim conquerors and British imperialism", arrived at the chapel of Adoration Monastery of the Sisters of St-Clare in Hampankatta around 10.15 am, shouting a pro-Bajrang Dal slogan. They entered the monastery and attacked it with '' lathis'', desecrating the tabernacle and the Eucharist, the high golden coloured monstrance (regarded by the nuns as the most sacred object in the church), a crucifix, the oil lamps, the vases on the altar, and a few statues of saints. A couple praying in the chapel at the time were also beaten by the intruders. Two nuns were also reportedly injured. Around the same time, a group of 30 to 35 people on motorbikes wearing masks attacked the empty Church of South India building at Kodaikal, armed with iron pipes, cricket stumps and sticks, shouting pro-Bajrang Dal slogans. Aside from damage to the buildings, windows and religious iconography, furniture, Bibles, and other Christian literature were damaged in various churches. A gang of about 30 youths had made an attempt to ransack a prayer hall of the New Life Fellowship Trust, but their efforts were thwarted by the police.

Around 8.30 pm on 14 September, miscreants pelted stones at the chapel of Padua Pre-university College, a Christian college located at Nanthoor, badly damaging its windows. Around 9.30 pm, miscreants badly damaged a statue located in front of Carmelites' house in Katkere, near Koteshwar. The Church of St. Sebastian in Permannur was badly damaged, including its windows and furniture. The Holy Cross Church at Kulshekar and St. Joseph, The Worker Church at Vamanjoor were also damaged. Police reports confirmed that Our Lady's Grotto at Vijayamarie Technical Institute and properties at the Infant Jesus Higher Primary School and Mary Hill Convent were also damaged by the miscreants on the night of 14 September. K. A. Abraham, pastor of Divine Deliverance Prayer Centre at Neerugadde in Shiroor, claimed that over 25 miscreants had attacked his prayer hall, and they were reported to have smashed the window panes, ransacked equipment and set a motorcycle and car on fire. Later, in the early hours of 15 September, individuals broke into the St. George Church belonging to the Syro Malabar Catholic Rite of the Belthangady Diocese in Ujire, Dakshina Kannada district, 70 km from Mangalore and burned the Bible, the carpet, prayer books and desecrated holy icons. Miscreants also ransacked the St. Thomas Church in Gorigandi in Chikkamagaluru district. Seven or eight masked men arriving on scooters were reported to have desecrated the large statue of St. Antony at St. Ann's Friary on Jail Road in Bejai, throwing flower pots to smash its glass covering. The official report into the attacks later claimed that the Bajrang Dal were the likely suspects for the attacks on churches in Chikkamagaluru district, including the Christian Believers' Prayer Hall, Jagadeshwara Church in Mudigere and Carmel Mathe Devalaya in Kudremukh, and had also harassed people gathered at Kapitanio High School in Mangalore. Several people also reportedly invaded the house and prayer meeting of a neo-convert in Singatagere of Kadur taluk. Other areas affected by the attacks include Kalkanady, Falnir, Madyanthar, Makodu, Singatagere, Jayapura, Shaktinagar, Thokottu, Bantwal, Belthangady, Udupi, Kulur, Kundapura, Karkala, Koppa, Balehanoor and Moodbidri. Individuals were also targeted during the event; in Kulur, two men and two children were attacked by a Hindu mob near Gurupur Bridge while on their way to their hometown in a private car, and in Kalladka, the Souza Textile owner and his wife were attacked by unidentified people. Two separate stabbing incidents were also reported in Kalladka, and the two men affected were admitted to hospital with serious injuries.

On 16 September, a 100-year-old statue of Mary at the St. Mary's Church in Kolar was damaged by vandals, St. George Church in Ernody was desecrated and attempted to be burned by vandals, and over 20 vandals desecrated the Rima Worship Centre at Adyar. On 18 September, vandals shattered the glass encasing of the Mother Mary statue of the Presentation Girls School in Dharwad and on 19 September, a gang of vandals on motorbikes pelted stones at the St. Xavier's Church in Padu Kody in Mangalore taluk and destroyed the statues. On 21 September, a further four attacks were reported, including Brethren Christa Aaradhanalaya prayer hall near Nellihudikeri in Kodagu district, the Believers' Church in Yedapadavu, Mangalore taluk, and two churches in Bangalore; St. James Church in Mariyannapalya near Hebbal and Lumbini Gardens, which had two gold plated crowns and cash from the offering box stolen and the main sacrament vandalised; and the Holy Church in the Name of Jesus at Rajarajeshwarinagar had the casing around the Infant Jesus smashed and the statue damaged. In Banaswadi, a group were reported to have pelted stones at a church and fled. A Catholic school was also attacked in Kasaragod district in Kerala.
Between 15 September and 10 October, Hindu nationalists directed a wave of attacks targeting Christian communities in Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, New Delhi, Punjab, Tamil Nadu and Uttarakhand, and Muslim communities in Gujarat and Maharashtra.

Christian protests

In response to the attacks in areas such as Hampankatta, Shaktinagar, Vamanjoor, Thokottu and Bantwal, the Christian community began protesting. The protestors blocked arterial city roads in their masses, especially in places such as Hampankatta, Kulshekar, Bejai, Derebail and Thokottu and rang bells in almost all the churches of the city, calling parishioners to their churches. In Hampankatta, over 4,000 Christians united to defend the Milagres Church and protest. Violence broke out at the Adoration monastery as police began caning the protestors with sticks and bursting teargas shells to disperse them, while they pelted stones at police vans and police. The police were reported to have caused further damage to the Adoration monastery by throwing back stones and glass bottles to restrain the protestors. Union Minister of Labour and Employment Oscar Fernandes and MLA B. Ramanath Rai arrived at the Hampankatta scene at 6 pm. In Karkala, the Catholics of Karkala deanery staged a protest on 15 September condemning the attacks and the desecration of the crucifix and sacrament at Adoration Monastery in particular and organised a 3 kilometre silent protest march from the bus stand to the ''taluk'' headquarters and submitted a memorandum to ''tehsildar'' Laxman Singh.
The protests involved over 2,500 people and among those present were incumbent parish priest John Barboza, Valerian Fernandes, Ajekar parish priest Valerian Fernandes, Attur parish priest Arthur Pereira, Miyar parish priest Ronald Miranda, Paschal Menezes, Parappady parish priest Alex Aranha, Michael D'Silva, Hirgan parish priest Michael Lobo, Kanajar parish priest Alwyn D'Cunha and many other priests and nuns in the area. The Christian protestors also clashed with police at St. Sebastian Church in the Permannur area of Ullal on the outskirts of Mangalore, shouting slogans and throwing stones at the police for their failure to arrest the perpetrators of the attacks. The police arrested several Christians after firing into the air and being involved in a ''lathi'' charge. Four people of pro-Hindu organisations were reportedly injured at Kalladka and Attavar on the outskirts of the Mangalore when their vehicles were attacked and were pelted with stones by a mob. Ten people, including one of the Sri Ram Sena activists, were reportedly stabbed during the protests and according to the police, the situation was used by some to settle personal scores and not all stabbing incidents were related to attack on churches and the subsequent violence in the city. The Sri Ram Sena protested against the stabbing of one of their activists by organising a shutdown of educational institutions and shops. The district administration responded by declaring a holiday for all educational institutions in Mangalore taluk, and extended prohibitory orders under the Section 144 Criminal Procedure Code for two more days in the wake of the attacks and protests as a precaution.

Over 25 Christians were initially arrested by the police during the Adoration incident, in comparison to seven young members of the Bajrang Dal who had initiated the attacks. Chief Minister B. S. Yeddyurappa later stated in a press conference that a total of 153 people had been arrested during the attacks and resultant protests within a two-day period and that some had been charged with looting, arson and rioting, saying that they would be "punished in accordance with the provisions of the law under they were charged." The BBC
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