(December 09, 2009) Catholics in the eastern Indian state of Orissa have expressed
relief after police arrested the main accused in the rape of a Catholic nun during
last year’s anti-Christian violence in the state. Police arrested Guru Ram Patra
in Nuagon market in Orissa’s Kandhamal district on Sunday and produced him in a court
in Balliguda the following day. Reportedly the general secretary of the Bharatiya
Janata Party in K. Nuagaon block, Patra is said to have led the mob that attacked
the nun at K. Nuagaon village on Aug. 24, 2008. He then raped her in front of others.
Fr Ajay Singh of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar archdiocese said the arrest has brought relief
to Church people and the victims. According to the priest, Patra led the mob that
destroyed several Church institutions, including Jan Vikas Kendra, the archdiocesan
social service centre. Fr. Singh also alleged Patra had gone around terrorizing witnesses
in the riot cases. The arrest is good for the people and it would enhance Orissa’s
image which was dented after the riots, he added. However, a Church official revealed
that Guru Ram Patra had studied at the Catholic Church-run Vijaya High School in Raikia
with funds from Christian donor agencies, and he was a resident of Bishop Tobar Hostel
in Raikia.