Daijiworld Media Network - Udupi (SP)
Udupi, Nov 22: As the highest number of affidavits about incidents of attacks on churches and the subequent developments were received in Mangalore and Udupi, the commission is contemplatting holding of inquiry in these places. "As two months have already elapsed, the government will be approached for an extension of three months. The commission will be giving suggestions to ensure that such incidents do not recur. The government has agreed to implement our recommendations to the extent possible and to inform us, if any of the recommendations can not be accepted," Justice Somashekhar said.
Justice Somashekhar received affidavits from the public at the office of the deputy commissioner after visiting the prayer centres located in Udupi and Shirur, that came under attacks of miscreants, on Thursday November 20. "The commission proposes to hold inquiry in Mangalore and Udupi. If this becomes impossible, the complainants and witnesses will be paid travelling allowance to come to Bangalore to adduce evidence at the hearing," he informed. He also informed, that the commission will visit several others churches before starting hearing, as petitions have come from Davangere,Kolar, Kodagu, Chitradurga, Bangalore rural and city districts as well as Mysore district.
The commission has also been authorised to draft law to affectively avert recurrence of such incidents. As this is a sensitive issue that involves constitutional, legal and religious issues, the commission would like to elicit opinions from experts. A seminar might be organized for the purpose, he explained.
During the sitting of the commission in Udupi for receiving affidavits, people came up with various complaints. A person named Ramesh said that dalits are not being allowed to build houses in some villages and untouchability is being practised. Relatives of Ajaykumar, who is fighting for his life in A J Hospital Mangalore after being hurt in the incidents of church-attack related violence, said that no one has come to see him. Somashekhar assured, that he would bring this to the notice of the deputy commisioner.
When Raghavendra Acharya said that the priests had declared in a meeting convened by the deputy commissioner that no churches in Udupi district were damaged and that the organisation named 'New Life' is not a mainstream organisation, Christian leaders countered, by saying that this does not mean that prayer centres can be attacked.