Assam bishop appeals for peace

(July 27, 2012) A Catholic bishop in the north-east Indian state of Assam has appealed for peace as violence between ethnic Bodo community and Muslim settlers in the state have left 42 people dead and 13 others missing. Bishop Thomas Pulloppillil of Bongaigaon , under whose diocesan jurisdiction come Assam’s four violence-affected districts has appealed to Caritas India, Catholic Relief Services (CRS), Northeast Community Health Association (NECHA) and other non-government organisation to provide food, clothing, shelter and health facilities for the affected. The bishop has constituted a relief team and peace mission committee and is continuously monitoring the situation, said a press statement from the diocese. Schools, institutions, health centers and church premises are serving as relief camps to those affected by the violence, the press release said. The killing of four Bodo men last week sparked off violent attacks by Bodo tribespeople on Muslim villages. Indian authorities on Thursday rushed more troops to quell the violence. Indefinite curfew and shoot-at-sight orders have been imposed in the worst-hit Kokrajhar district. Chirag and Dhubri districts have been placed under night curfew. Nearly 200,000 people rendered homeless have sought refuge in over 100 relief camps.
Expressing concern over the escalating violence, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India said it was exploring the possibilities of working together with the State administration and other like-minded NGOs in extending help in restoring peace and normalcy. Tensions boiled over on July 20 when Bodo tribals accused Muslims of killing four of their youths. This triggered a series of clashes in which both groups have been torching houses in Kokrajhar and Chirang districts. On Thursday, Assam's Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi met with Bodo and Muslim leaders in an effort to defuse tensions and restore peace, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is expected to visit the strife-torn areas on Saturday. Meanwhile, state Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi slammed the media for its reports on the violence and insisted that the situation was “improving”.