Mangalore, Jul 16 (DHNS): BJP Mahila Parishat leader Asha Jagadish who deposed before the Justice B K Somasekhara Commission of Inquiry (JBKSCOI) stated that conversion was the main reason for incidents of attack on Christian prayer centres that took place on September 14, 2008.
“Conversion centres were attacked only because of the New Life organisation. I did not know whether the then Bajrang Dal chief Mahendra Kumar had owned the responsibility of carrying out attacks,” Asha admitted before the Commission during the witness examination.
She said that she is not able to recollect the names of those literatures which insulted the Hindu religious sentiments.
She asserted that her neighbour Ganesh was forcefully converted into Christianity to marry a Christian girl.
“The Holy Saint School in Bangalore, where I studied upto fifth standard, did not allow me to wear kumkum or banges according to Hindu tradition,” she explained asserting that conversion is the reason for attacks.
Another witness Bhagawan Das from Permannur said that the police had clamped Section 144 and asked Christians to disperse from the Permannur St Sebastian Church premises. “Christians attacked houses of Hindus, shouted slogans against BJP,” he said.
He further added that he did not notice Bajrang Dal activists near the church.
When advocate for the government Narayana Reddy started showing photographs of untoward incidents that took place at Permannur Church premises on September 15, 2008, to Bhagawan Das, advocate for Christians B Ibrahim opposed it pointing out that it was not marked by the Commission as evidence. Meanwhile, Justice B K Somasekhara said that photos and CD can be used as evidence.
Later Reddy showed the photos to Bhagawan Das and confirmed whether he can identify persons in the photographs.
919 hours of sitting
The JBKSCOI has conducted a total of 919 hours-long sittings in Bangalore, Mangalore, Udupi and Davanagere to complete the examination of 988 petitions.
Vidyashankar informed that the Commission held a total of 209 sittings, wherein 156 sittings of 720 hours were conducted by Justice B K Somasekhara himself.
A total of 2,283 exhibits have been taken on record in addition to 33 material objects. Enquiry in respect of affidavits received from Kolar, Chikkaballapur, Mysore, Bangalore, Kodagu and Dharwad, Bellary and Belgaum have already been completed and enquiries pertaining to other districts are almost on the verge of completion, he said adding that 25 petitions yet to be completed in Dakshina Kannada district.
All activities are conducted in a transparent manner and all the data pertaining to the affairs of the Commission including cause list, depositions, interrogations, list of exhibits and court orders are posted on Commission’s website - www.jbkscoi.org on a day to day basis, Vidyashankar informed.