Hindu temple on the debris of Church: Orissa

A Hindu temple is being constructed on the debris of a church that was razed down during the anti-Christian pogrom in Orissa.

A Bangalore based advocacy group, the Global Council of Indian Christians, claimed that Batticola church in Kandhamal, which was burned by Hindu fundamentalists on August, last year, is being used for the construction of a Hindu temple.

The church in fact came under the scanner when members of a Hindu group accused the church of a conspiracy in the murder of VHP leader Swami Laxmananda Saraswati. The church however has denied these claims and called the documents, and statements against the church as 'fabricated'.

According to a trusted source, the Batticola church inaugurated in 1995, several years back came under alleged attack by Hindu radicals under the leadership of Laxmananda.

Although the violence has ebbed down in the state, several violence sensitive areas are still witnessing isolation of Christians and continual threats demanding 'reconversions'.

Several thousands of the victims have left their homeland and went seeking refugee in other states of India. Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka are the few states where the victims have taken shelter.