The martyrdom cause of India's Kandhamal Christians

We have heard much about the violence against Christians in eastern India’s Odisha state, and the ‎continuing denial of justice to them in the numerous cases pending before the law courts.  Violence against Christians during Christmas 2007 was a mere prelude to the violence on a much larger scale in and after August 2008.  With its epicenter on Kandhamal District, this time it erupted with untold savagery, with ‎Hindu extremists blaming Christians for the August 23, 2008 murder of Hindu leader Swami ‎Lakshmanananda Saraswati, despite Maoist rebels claiming the assassination.   Many have perished in the carnage.

Among several persons fighting for the cause of the survivors of the violence in Kandhamal is Fr. Ajaya Kumar Singh, a social worker and human rights activist.  The priest of Cuttack-Bhubaneshwar Archdiocese who is director of the Odisha Forum for Social Action of Odisha Bishops' Regional Council, has been honoured by the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) for his efforts to secure the rights of Kandhamal’s persecuted Christians.  Fr. Ajaya was recently in Rome and we came to know more about the cause of sainthood that the bishops of Odisha have initiated to recognize the martyrdom of Kandhamal’s Christians.   Fr. Ajaya began by giving us a background to the persecution of Christians in his state. 

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