AHWA (The Dangs), December 24: And then they came for the Christians, and left behind a trail of burning crosses, damaged prayer halls and a deeply shaken community. Two years after Hindu fundamentalist groups in Gujarat trained their hate on churches in the Dangs district, all's quiet on Christmas eve. The violence of 1998 left far behind, it may well be a merry Christmas for the faithful of this backward tribal district this year.Most of the thatch and reed Christian prayer halls that were the objects of attack have since been restored. In fact, sparkling new temples built by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and followers of Ashram Bapu line the road leading to Ahwa, the headquarters of Gujarat's smallest district.The last reported incident of violence was on April 10, 1999. Last year's Christmas was peaceful, though it was celebrated under the shadow of police protection. ``There is little likelihood of trouble this Christmas. Unlike last year, Christian organisations haven't been asked to tone down their celebrations,'' says Father Raphael of Jeevanjyot Vidyalaya.Even Janubhai Pawar, President of the Hindu Dharmjagaran Manch and a frontrunner in the anti-Christian campaign, is somewhat muted this year. ``Nothing will happen,'' he says, in supreme irony. But he admits that ``The administration has not given us permission for any programme till December 25.''Pawar himself cuts a lonely figure. His bunch of cronies is missing, as is his trademark saffron sash. The only visible declaration of his politics is a saffron flag fluttering atop his motorcycle. ``Reconversions are on, but at a very slow pace,'' he complains. This Christmas, Pawar will camp in Halmodi village in Surat district, where a shrine is now in the eye of a storm.The police, though, are taking no chances. A posse of police vehicles has already arrived in Ahwa, and more are on the way. ``Given what happened in 1998, we simply can't take any chances. Police bandobast has become mandatory here,'' says resident deputy collector D.U. Patel.The glare of the national and international media on this backward tribal district has had its spin-offs. Roadsigns and milestones have got a fresh coat of paint. The National Dairy Development Board is exploring its possibilities in the Waghai-Saputara region.An NGO has adopted 18 villages under a rural development project. And as many as 64 check dams have been set up to increase the region's irrigation potential, says Secretary in-charge (Dangs) S. K. Nanda, who will also spend his Christmas in Dangs.Last month, Chief Minister Keshubhai Patel chose Dangs as the site for Gujarat's only e-governance project. Power failures are no more common.The anti-Christian campaign also caused the BJP to lose the taluka panchayat elections to the Congress. ``The population had the anti-Christian campaign on their minds when they cast their votes,'' says a local leader who defected to the Congress before the trouble began.And the popularity of Christian schools has only grown over the last two years. ``The rush is unmanageable. We had to remove benches to accommodate more students in the classroom,'' says Father Raphael.INSIGHTAHMEDABAD:The Gujarat High Court has issued notices to the state home department and Surat and Dangs collectors in a special civil application which expressed apprehension that fundamentalists were planning to disturb Christmas in the state, particularly in south Gujarat, this Christmas. Justice P.K. Sarkar, who heard the petition filed by Samson Christian on Saturday, made the notices returnable on December 27. ``In the meantime, it is expected that the State government will take necessary steps for maintaining law and order in the area,'' the court observed. ENS
