Action speaks

The continued failure of hope leads to despair, just as utterly containable disturbances allowed to persist lead to crises. Such is the story of Orissa, where the Naveen Patnaik government has been overseeing a small disturbance spiral into a communal-cum-ethnic nightmare. A month ago, it was possible to hope that the violence against Christians that had begun in Kandhamal district would be buried there itself, and soon. There is little to rejoice at the fact that Kandhamal has remained relatively peaceful for a couple of days since the violence has spread beyond. Without going into the genesis of any violence 8212; that is a matter for social scientists 8212; without debating the aptness of the qualifiers 8220;communal8221; and 8220;ethnic8221; in this case, it can nevertheless be argued that, with regard to violence, an administration8217;s imperative is to stop it first. And to end the Kandhamal clashes and prevent a domino effect, the state government had to treat it as a law and order problem and address it thence. It takes years to produce a near-perfect analysis of any communal violence, of its causes and effects. But it takes just the adequate number of policemen or paramilitary personnel and the political will to stop that violence.

That is not to say that the Orissa government has done nothing. In fact, in the early days of the attacks on Christians in Kandhamal , the Naveen Patnaik administration had earned praise. But the outbreak of violence in Boudh district proves that not enough is being done. Stories of policemen standing aside to watch victims being beaten up, their houses looted and burnt don8217;t enhance the image of the law keepers. As this newspaper reported on Friday, the police took a full 38 days to collect the medical examination report that confirmed the rape of a nun, although the FIR had been filed on August 26.

The government must make itself more visible and help the policemen and paramilitary forces in doing their duty without inhibition. It is a pity that Orissa8217;s attempt at economic development gets little attention, and that it finds itself in the news for the wrong reasons. Naveen Patnaik must prove himself equal to the tough task he has at hand. For he has much to lose.