Religious Communalism in India: A Kandhamal Christian Experience
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Book Overview
In late August 2008, the remote district of Kandhamal in Odisha, India, was engulfed in a wave of anti-Christian violence. Dozens of lives were lost, thousands of homes were destroyed, and hundreds of churches were burned. What triggered this devastating explosion of religious communalism, and how did a history of local coexistence degrade into such intense conflict?In Religious Communalism in India: A Kandhamal Christian Experience, D. Isaac Devadoss offers an academic study of this critical period. Based on his doctoral dissertation at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Devadoss contextualizes the violence by exploring the intricate socio-economic, political, and cultural dynamics of the region. He traces the history of Christian missions and the rise of Hindu nationalism, analyzing how local tensions between the tribal Konds and the Dalit Panas were integrated into a broader ideological framework.This study provides a platform for those who lived through the conflagration. Drawing on oral history interviews with forty survivors across several villages, the book preserves moving testimonies of loss, survival, and faith. Devadoss also examines the roles played by the state, local police, and the media in handling the crisis.Religious Communalism in India serves as a helpful resource for students and scholars of religious studies, Indian history, and postcolonial theory, exploring the fragile nature of secularism and the ongoing struggle for identity in modern India.
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