Simultaneous explosions in Christian churches as far apart as Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Goa, hard on the heels of a spate of attacks on missionaries in Western UP and the battering to death of a priest in a village just outside Mathura are not unconnected incidents ... Police are assiduously suggesting that the motive is burglary. Why such brazen lies? Whose instructions are they following? (There is a) planned reign of terror unleashed on the minority community by the Sangh Parivar and their proponents ... to terrorise the community (and) to keep the Hindutva platform alive.

As the party of government, the BJP cannot be seen to be helpless, hence the central leadership make polite noises but do absolutely nothing to control its Parivar ... Instead the home minister says they are not involved and the Prime Minister and calls for a national debate on conversion. The BJP's coalition partners who, it was hoped, would keep communal elements under check, are just as much to blame for their silence. Attacks on Christians have grown in intensity and frequency in the last year. Why is the Sangh Parivar suddenly training its guns on this tiny minority which they must know is in no position to, and does not intend to, threaten Hindu dominance? And answer that suggests itself is that the government has forced the Parivar to go slow on their favourite pastime -Muslim-bashing. Many coalition partners have Muslim voters whom they cannot antagonise, so temporarily the VHP can keep themselves occupied and in practice, by turning their attention to the another minority. Also as the party in power, if the BJP allow the Sangh Parivar to continue instigating Hindu-Muslim riots, it is their government which will come under flak. These are the constraints of realpolitik ... If the Parivar can establish all Christian conversions are forced and therefore illegal, it must follow, by their lights, that conversions to Islam are also illegal ... Very much on the agenda is control of Christian schools, institutions of excellence in great demand ... If they can get the missionary schools to toe the line then shutting down madrasas and other minority institutions becomes easier. If Christians can be established as outsiders, then so are Muslims - the real target. The Parivar is fooling no one.