Several thousand Christians marched on the streets and blocked highways in the eastern Indian state of Odisha to demand justice and protection from increasing attacks against them by Hindu mobs.
Protest rallies, attended by 1,000 to 5,000 Christians, were held in 20 out of 30 district centres in the state on July 1, according to Aravind Kachhap, an orga-nizer and president of the Rashtriya Christian Morcha or National Christian Front. Some 300 people walked through the state’s capital, Bhubaneswar, and blocked a road, said Jugal Ranjit, a Christian leader, who attended the rally. “It was the first time Christians had rallied in such huge numbers and blocked a road in the capital city,” he said. “Normal life was disrupted in many cities and towns, sending a clear message that Christians will not tolerate any more attacks,” said Father Ajay Singh, a social activist from the Cuttack-Bhubaneshwar archdiocese.
Christian leaders at the rallies demand-ed an end to Hindu groups’ oppression, discrimination, and violence against Christians, who belong to indigenous and Dalit (formerly untouchable) communities.
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