Patnaik: Resign?

New Delhi, Jan. 5: The Supreme Court today said the Orissa government “had better resign” if it couldn’t protect Christians in riot-scarred Kandhamal.

“If the state government can’t protect minorities, it has no right to rule and had better resign,” a three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice K.G. Balakrishnan said.

The court asked the state to take a decision on withdrawing central paramilitary forces from the region “in co-ordination” with the Centre. “We are a secular country… we cannot allow prosecution of minorities,” Balakrishnan added.

Today’s observations followed a plea from Cuttack’s archbishop for the community’s protection.

The archbishop’s counsel, Colin Gonsalves, drew the court’s attention to recurrent bouts of violence and urged it to direct the Centre to keep the paramilitary forces longer in the state.

Chief minister Naveen Patnaik had said last week that central forces would be taken off in stages from mid-January.

The forces were first deployed on the apex court’s directive last October.

Violence had broken out after the killing of VHP leader Swami Laxmananda Saraswati last August. The VHP had blamed Christians for the killing, disregarding suggestions that Maoists might be involved.

The area has been simmering over reservation benefits that tribals who converted to Christianity have been demanding.