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ShareBhubaneshwar: People's anger at a district administration that was indifferent to their plight caused the riots in Orissa's Kandhamal district last year, a judicial commission investigating the violence has said. The report was submitted on Wednesday.
The Orissa government ordered the probe after violence erupted after the murder of the VHP senior leader Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati on August 23, 2008 by suspected Maoists. Former Lok Pal Justice SC Mohapatra was heading the panel.
"Sources of the violence were rooted in land disputes, conversion and re-conversion and fake certificate issues," said Justice Mohapatra in his interim report on the violence which claimed 43 lives and damaged many houses and churches. He did not elaborate on the conversions and reconversions issue.
However, the report also cited how continued the exploitation of tribals and land-grabbing prodded the people of the area. "The riots also happened because the SC/STs suspected 'Pano' dalits of capturing their land by fraud," Justice Mohapatra said.
The tribals were aggrieved when they found out that non-tribals were taking away their jobs by giving false caste certificates. Even though the local administration was aware of this, it did nothing to stop the fraud. The fake certificates were a major factor because it created discontent among the Kandha tribals who constitute 52 per cent of Kandhamal's population.The Commission is silent on the role of the VHP in the violence, though the final report is expected to contain something on this. The report, however, came down heavily on the police for doing nothing to stop the violence.
Justice Mohapatra, who submitted the interim report on July 1, said the government should take steps immediately to take remedial measures. "It will take at least two years to complete inquiry, but the interim report will help the government intervene immediately," he said.
