When ex-prime minister and JD(S) supremo H.D. Deve Gowda and Mallikarjuna Kharge, a senior Congress leader, tried to take political advantage of the situation by visiting the damaged prayer halls, Hindus stopped them to show their damaged house and other belongings. This clearly shows that large number of Hindus are also affected in the attack by Christians. Rumours are thick in the air that some Muslim fundamentalist outfits have joined the Christians in attacking the Hindus, to fight Bajrang Dal and Sri Rama Sena, an active Hindu outfit in Mangalore. Though communal violence is common in Mangalore, the recent Christian violence against Hindus is something new. Usually trivial incidents like teasing, burning crackers for celebrating Pakistan'svictory in the cricket matches, eloping or the big incidents like organising yatras, religious procession etc used to trigger communal violence.
Newlife, one of the 20 missionary centres, belongs to Karnataka Missions Network and started missionary activities six years ago in coastal areas of Dakshin Kannada District. It is actively propagating Christianity in Karnataka, other states and also in few foreign countries through publications, advertisements and through www.newlifevoice.org website. It started publishing and distributing literature Yesu Suvarthe containing glories of Jesus among Christians in Kannada language. But over the period of years locals felt that Newlife was indulging in conversions by alluring the gullible people by offering money, job, medical aid, vehicle etc. What irked the Hindus is that Newlife started distributing their literatures to Hindus to entice them to convert to Christianity. A local person told this correspondent that Newlife started giving instructions to newly converted people to abandon wearing tilak on forehead, not to visit and offer prayers at the Hindu temples, replacing the photos and idols of Hindu Gods and Goddesses with Cross etc. This was the beginning for creating disturbance in the peace-loving society.
With more and more gullible people falling prey to this organisation, Newlife went one step ahead in deriding the Hindu Gods and Goddesses by disdaining Lord Krishna?married to thousands of women (characterless), Ganapati?rests in water after the puja (useless), Kali?wearing skulls all around the neck (ugly) etc., in their pamphlets, CDs and book Satya Darshini. Bangalore North MP, H.T.Sangliana, who is the guardian of Karnataka Missions Network, said that he will lodge a complaint against Newlife if there is an evidence with Bajrang Dal. The local public mentioned that ?the method used by Christian missionaries in converting is like a network or multilevel marketing technique used by MNCs. In the first place they appoint young people by giving them a salary of Rs 4000 to 4500. They will go around meeting the gullible people in market areas, in buses etc., become friends and take them to church to introduce to the father there. Upon introduction they will be paid Rs 2500 per person. Pursuing with them and taking them to Velankanni Church, in Tamil Nadu, they get Rs. 3000. Further follow-up with them and finally conversion to Christianity by changing the name, they get an incentive of Rs 10000 onwards. The more they convert the more bonus points are added. The whole Hindu community is upset because of this.?
More and more Hindus belonging to dominant castes like Brahmins and Vokkaligas have already converted to Christianity in Mangalore and hence their friends and relatives are naturally angry with churches. On Tuesday, the day of Mangalore bandh was called by Sri Rama Sena, protesting the stabbing of their leader on Monday by masked men, there was a network of sms, telling the Christians to respect Hindu sentiments. A few of them read: ?Catholic or Newlife respect culture of this land. Don'tthink tolerance of Hindus as their weakness. If we can give land and stone to build churches, we can also pelt and break the same churches. Hindu society fully back Bajrangi guys who are retaliating in Mangalore and the surrounding regions on the issue of publications of denigrating and wrong information about Hindu Gods.?
Karnataka Chief Minister Shri B.S. Yeddyurappa said his government will not tolerate forcible conversions and will take stringent action against missionaries involved in conversions. He also said that his government will investigate about the funds received by churches and other Christian missionaries by issuing a memo to ascertain the credibility of the churches in Karnataka. He further added that the government will take action against those indulging in arson.
