A team of six lawyers documented allegations of burial denial and social boycott targeting tribal Christians in Balasore district, Odisha, following an investigation conducted on March 15, 2025. The team interviewed community leaders and intimidated villagers under Raibania police station to gather firsthand accounts of the ongoing religious tensions.
Conflict erupted on December 18, 2024, when a group identifying as “Sarna Majhi/Majhi Pargana” blocked the burial of Budhia Murmu, a local Santal tribal Christian. The group claimed burial practices violated their traditions and prevented the ceremony for 12 hours before eventually allowing it to proceed.
“The tribal Christians were shocked to discover for the first time such threats and intimidations from their fellow tribals over the burial of their relatives,” states the report. This initial confrontation has sparked a series of escalating incidents throughout the region.
Police visited the Parish Church on December 23, 2024, seeking the priest who conducted the burial rites. Officers demanded his caste certificate and contacted officials in his native place to verify his background. The priest remains unaware of the specific complaints filed against him.
Mediation attempts have repeatedly failed. Police summoned both parties on December 24, but opponents of the Christian community didn’t attend. The Executive Magistrate of Jaleswar issued another summons on December 26 based on an FIR filed by Raibania police citing “mischief” caused by the opposing group.
Despite growing tensions, the Christian community held “Shudhi Rituals” (Requiem Mass) on December 28 under police protection after what the report describes as attempts by “miscreants” to disrupt the ceremony.
Tensions flared again on February 27, 2025, when individuals allegedly affiliated with the Majhi Pargana group disrupted prayer services in a neighbouring village. Residents of Dudhia Khali filed a police complaint against these “anti-social elements” following the incident.
Local media has worsened the situation, according to the fact-finding team. Several newspapers have published what the report characterizes as misleading articles over a two-month period, alleging that Christian Adivasis are “destroying traditional Adivasi culture by embracing a certain religion.”
During a February 24 meeting organized by the Tahasildar, Christian Adivasis defended their burial rights while the Majhi Pargana group claimed that “Christian Adivasi have no burial ground rights as per the Constitution.” The meeting ended without resolution.
The lawyers’ team, comprising Clara D’Souza, Sujata Jena, Gitanjali Senapati, Sophia Mariam, Balthazar, and Ajaya Kumar Singh, connected these incidents to a recent Supreme Court judgment from January 27, 2025. The ruling involved a burial rights case from Chhattisgarh where Justice B.V. Nagarathna stated that restricting such rights violated constitutional protections of equality, non-discrimination, and right to life.
The report also highlights another incident in Nabarangpur district of Odisha, where on March 2, 2025, Hindu villagers reportedly forced four Christians to convert to Hinduism before allowing them to bury their family member, 70-year-old Kesab Santa.
“The change of guard in the Odisha state has escalated further vulnerable situations of the Christians,” the report notes.
The fact-finding team recommends state promotion of peace and communal harmony, action against those creating division, monitoring of inflammatory media content, interfaith dialogues, and para-legal training on constitutional values.
