Union home minister P Chidambaram, who has spoken twice to chief minister Naveen Patnaik in the last couple of days, has committed extra Central forces to keep vigil at Christian institutions and a helicopter for air surveillance of riot-hit Kandhamal and Sambhalpur districts.
Mr Chidambaram, in a statement issued on Wednesday, asked the state government to put all the resources at its disposal to ensure that peace prevails between communities during the festival. The home minister also made a personal appeal to the people of Orissa to maintain communal harmony.
“The situation in Orissa has been engaging the attention of the Central government in the last two weeks,” Mr Chidambaram noted in the statement. It be recalled that several Sangh outfits under the aegis of Swami Lakhmananda Saraswati Shraddhanjali Samiti (SLSSS) had earlier given a call for Orissa bandh on December 25 to press for action against the killers of the VHP leader who was murdered on August 23.
The bandh had raised concerns among the Christian leaders who shared their apprehensions regarding the safety of Christians and their institutions with various leaders, including Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Mr Naveen Patnaik.
However, following the intervention of senior BJP leader L K Advani as well as the Orissa chief minister, who assured the Sangh outfits that 7 persons suspected of murdering Saraswati had been arrested, the SLSSS decided to withdraw its bandh call.
When Mr Chidambaram called up Mr Patnaik on Wednesday to know the status, he was reassured by the latter that there would be no bandh in Orissa on December 25.
Nevertheless, the Centre has asked the state to mount vigil at minority pockets and institutions with the help of the large number of Central forces available in the state. This includes 24 companies of CRPF deployed for counter-Naxalite duties and an additional 49 companies of CRPF and 4 companies of RAF sent to the state in the wake of communal violence following the murder of VHP leader Swami Laxmananda Saraswati.
On Wednesday, the Centre also dispatched a helicopter for patrolling over Kandhamal and Sambhalpur districts. “The Central government is in constant touch with the state government,” Mr Chidambaram said, adding that he had requested the chief minister to keep him posted on the developments. “I.have offered him further assistance, if necessary....I have impressed upon him that it is the responsibility of the state government to maintain law and order and protect the lives and property of all sections of the people in the state,” he stated.
Appealing to the people of Orissa to maintain peace and harmony, Mr Chidambaram underlined that “Christmas is celebrated in many countries of the world, including India, as a day of joy, happiness and peace. I am confident that the government of Orissa will ensure that December 25 and the days following will be marked by peace and harmony.”
The SLSSS had originally given the bandh call seeking the arrest of all assailants behind Saraswati’s killing. However, after being assured that 7 arrests had been made and the state government would do its best to solve the case, the SLSSS decided against casting a shadow on Christmas celebrations in the state and revoked its bandh call.
However, there remains some concern over a plan by the Kui Samaj Samanwaya Samiti to hold a congregation in Barkhama to mark the first death anniversary of its leader, Khageswar Mallick, who was killed in communal violence on December 25 last year.
Barkhama, where the Kui Samaj Samanwaya Samiti wants to hold the congregation, had been singed by communal riots soon after.
The Kui Samaj Samanwaya Samiti, which is headed by Lambodar Kanhar and represents the majority Kuis, says it would “certainly” commemorate Mallick’s death anniversary.