1999 Ranalai violence

1999 Ranalai violence refers to the incident of violence that occurred on March 15, 1999, in the village of Ranalai in Gajapati district of Orissa. The violence occurred after a dispute of adding religious symbols in the Khamani Hill of the village. A crowd of 2000 people, reportedly followers of the Sangh Parivar, armed with country made guns and weapons, completely burned down 157 Christian houses and looted the remaining Christian houses in the village. 14 Christians were injured including three injured by gun shots. An investigation by the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) blamed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for the violence.

The dispute started, when a Christian cross that had been inscribed on a hill from 1972 was erased by a mob. This was after a meeting by Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) in the village the previous day where it was decided to remove the symbol. This was quickly mediated by a peace committee formed by the villagers. Later, some followers of Sangh Parivar changed it into the icon of Lord Jagannath. This was also mediated by the peace committee and the villagers agreed that the hill would not display any religious icon. A group of villagers of the peace committee went to the hill to wipe off the present symbol on March 15. Violence broke out when a mob of 2000 people, reportedly followers of the Sangh Parivar reached the hill at the same time and painted an image of the trishul. The mob then proceeded to the village and went on to attack.

Some villagers blamed the RSS, the VHP and the Vanavasi Kalyan Ashram for instigating communal hatred and said that they were living peacefully before for generations. The Christians in the village claimed that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) used the symbol to provoke hostility between both the communities. Many news reports attributed the violence to an earlier meeting organized by the BJP where a local leader claimed that a cross can easily be changed into a trishul, the Chief minister of Odisha also acknowledged these statements made by the BJP leader. The National Commission for Minorities reported that the incident was planned and not a stray incident and also accused the BJP for the violence.