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 A three-member fact finding committee on the recent communal violence in Orissa's Kandhamal district has strongly criticised the ruling BJD-BJP government in the state, saying that it had shown callous indifference to a tragedy that was waiting to happen.
The committee, led by Dr John Dayal, member of the National Integration Council and Secretary General of the All India Christian Council, released a White Paper on the Kandhamal in the Orissa capital Bhubaneswar. [Editor's note: The group also included Advocate Nicholas Barla, a lawyer and human rights expert from Orissa, and Mr. Hemant Nayak, social scientist and human rights and development activist, Orissa. To view the entire white paper released on Jan. 5, 2007, see http://groups.google.com/group/JohnDayal/browse_thread/thread/17aef1aebe4f1e70]
The committee condemned all forms of fundamentalism, whether Hindu or Christian and demanded a judicial probe by a sitting judge of the High court or the Supreme Court.
''We need to put an end to fundamentalism which has penetrated all walks of life, the rural areas, among the poor, judges, police, everywhere. The crisis in India is not one of religion but development and we cannot afford to shift our focus away from development,'' said Dr John Dayal. (Source: "Orissa: Panel slams govt, demands probe", NDTV, Jan. 6, 2008 http://www.ndtv.com/convergence/ndtv/story.aspx?id=NEWEN20080037827&ch=1/6/2008%2010:57:00%20AM)
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