Orissa investigation finds death toll vastly underestimated in anti-Christian rampages

November 04, 2008

An investigation by India's Communist Party has announced that at least 500 Christians have been killed by mobs of Hindu zealots in the state of Orissa-- more than ten times the official estimate-- since the violence erupted there in August . The government's official casualty list shows only 31 deaths, but critics have argued that Orissa's Hindu-nationalist ruling party has turned a blind eye to the sectarian violence. One official told investigators that he had personally authorized cremation of more than 200 bodies.

 

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Further information:

• At least 500 Christians killed in Orissa, government sources say (AsiaNews)