Catholic leaders fear resurgence of violence after attacks in India

Published: 2003-11-26

BHUBANESWAR, India (CNS) -- As attacks on church personnel increased in India's Orissa state, Catholic leaders said they feared another bout of anti-church violence in this eastern Indian state. Bishop Lucas Kerketta of Sambalpur, whose diocese in Orissa is predominately tribal, recalled that in 1999, the state witnessed a series of attacks on Christians, including the murder of missionaries. Hundreds of tribal Christians in remote villages were attacked, and suspected Hindu fanatics burned their huts and thatched chapels. The bishop and other church leaders told UCA News, an Asian church news agency based in Thailand, that they have seen an increase in such violence since September. In an incident Nov. 23, a team of Catholic workers returning from a village mission in Cuttack-Bhubaneswar Archdiocese was attacked with stones. The archdiocese is based in the state capital of Bhubaneswar.

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