Orissa Government in India harasses Christians. Demolition order for a church

(August 22, 2011) The victims of anti-Christian violence in Kandhamal, Orissa are not allowed to rebuild their church, indeed, they have been ordered by the authorities to suspend the construction of small building (already stopped due to lack of funds) to satisfy the radical Hindus in the region. The Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) has appealed to the Chief Prosecutor of the Supreme Court of India to stop the government of Orissa. The refugee victims of the 2008 violence were relocated to Nandagiri, in the G. Udayagiri Tahasil area and were not permitted to return to their original villages. 54 Catholic families and 17 Pentecostal families live in Nandagiri. Since June 2009 they began to celebrate their functions in a plot of land and build a church, a small building, with their voluntary contributions. Usually, when there is a new village, the government provides land for the place of worship. The families were given a verbal assurance that over time they would receive a parcel of land for the church. For this they began to build one. The local Christian leader, Krisant Mallick, made a formal request for a permit for the plot, and was given assurances in that regard. But suddenly the local leader Krisant Mallick was asked to appear in court August 17^th over the construction of the church. And finally, the local official wrote to him and ordered them to evacuate the land and demolish the church within 30 days. The Global Church has approached the Supreme Court of India for justice.