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ODISHA<br />
always bothered this section – cow slaughter (go hatya) and<br />
religious conversion (dharmantikaran). Thus, a major section<br />
of literary and cultural figures in Odisha gradually tilted<br />
towards Hindutva. For instance, Ratnakar Chayani, a respectable<br />
writer, became the president of an RSS front organisation<br />
that was created after Laxmanananda’s death, thereby legitimising<br />
anti-Christian violence. The benign role of Christianity,<br />
which had once been a part of Odisha’s popular discourse,<br />
has been systematically erased by the RSS.<br />
With the support of this section of civil society, the Sangh<br />
parivar’s anti-Christian campaign has harped on the largescale<br />
conversion of adivasis, creating communal tension in the<br />
state. Along with this, there is a widespread belief that Christian<br />
organisations receive funds from abroad. For instance,<br />
when World Vision’s premises were ransacked during the 2008<br />
riots, the Odia intelligentsia did not sympathise with this<br />
“dubious” non-governmental organisation (NGO). It is true that<br />
Christian institutions are among the highest recipients of foreign<br />
donations, but Sangh parivar organisations in Odisha like<br />
the Utkal Bipanna Sahayata Samiti (UBSS) have also received<br />
donations from overseas organisations like the India Development<br />
Relief Fund (IDRF) and Sewa International, UK, for postcyclone<br />
reconstruction and other welfare activities. Besides<br />
funds, the emergence of new churches in the coastal areas in<br />
the post-1999 super-cyclone period has raised the fear of conversion<br />
and created resentment among the middle class. Their<br />
anger was manifested at Kilipal where converted dalit members<br />
were forcibly tonsured. Finally, the cow still has great<br />
symbolic and emotional value for Odias in general. Incidentally,<br />
the present Gajapati King, the representative of lord<br />
Jagannath, takes a strident anti-Christian stand on conversion<br />
and cow slaughter, conveniently forgetting the role played<br />
by Madhusudan Das, a Christian, in defending the rights of<br />
Jagannath and the Puri king.<br />
Another explanation pertains to the role of the middle class<br />
and the media. Along with the communalisation of civil<br />
society, there has also been a steady communalisation of the<br />
middle class and the media. While the old middle class came<br />
primarily from the upper castes, a new middle class has<br />
emerged from the middle and backward castes, who are well<br />
disposed to Hindutva. While the old middle class was mainly<br />
educated by secular state institutions, a large section of the<br />
new middle class is the product of the RSS educational network.<br />
Around 750 Saraswati Shishu Vidya Mandirs in Odisha impart<br />
education to 1,80,000 students from kindergarten to Class XII,<br />
and 11,000 dedicated teachers, steeped in the Sangh ideology,<br />
teach these students as a mission. These schools are very popular<br />
among middle and lower-middle-class parents as they<br />
provide “quality and value education” for a moderate fee. In<br />
2010, of the first 100 rank holders in the Class X examination,<br />
55 were from Saraswati Shishu Vidya Mandirs. Moreover, the<br />
BJP, which was a partner in the state government for about a<br />
decade, had access to both material and cultural resources.<br />
For instance, it strategically retained the education portfolio to<br />
carry out its indoctrination in educational institutions.<br />
The print media, which was once secular, has by and large<br />
internalised the Sangh discourse. Leading newspapers like<br />
Samaj, which played a historic role in the freedom struggle,<br />
now give generous space to Hindu communal writings and<br />
even black out secular articles. There has been a proliferation<br />
of Odia vernacular newspapers and many owners and journalists<br />
are Sangh parivar sympathisers. A similar trend is seen in<br />
the electronic media. Besides, the RSS has a strong publication<br />
wing, which disseminates Sangh literature across the state.<br />
Neo-liberalism, Communalism and the New Middle Class<br />
Yet another explanation makes a connection between the neoliberal<br />
economy, communalism, and the new middle class.<br />
Odisha’s new middle class, consisting of engineers, computer<br />
and banking professionals, financial managers, doctors, lawyers,<br />
entrepreneurs, contractors and middle men, by and large<br />
welcomes corporates and multinationals, hoping to get generous<br />
employment packages and business opportunities. They<br />
believe that while Hindutva will give them social recognition,<br />
neo-liberalism will empower them economically. Before the<br />
coming of a neo-liberal economy and the entry of corporates,<br />
REVIEW OF URBAN AFFAIRS<br />
March 30, 2013<br />
(Un)Settling the City: Analysing Displacement in Delhi from 1990 to 2007<br />
Revitalising Economies of Disassembly: Informal Recyclers, Development Experts<br />
and E-Waste Reforms in Bangalore<br />
Biometric Marginality: UID and the Shaping of Homeless Identities in the City<br />
Protest, Politics, and the Middle Class in Varanasi<br />
Revisiting the 74th Constitutional Amendment for Better Metropolitan Governance<br />
Urban Multiplicities: Governing India’s Megacities<br />
–Gautam Bhan, Swathi Shivanand<br />
–Rajyashree N Reddy<br />
–Ursula Rao<br />
–Jolie M F Wood<br />
–K C Sivaramakrishnan<br />
–Ashima Sood<br />
For copies write to: Circulation Manager,<br />
Economic and Political Weekly,<br />
320-321, A to Z Industrial Estate, Ganpatrao Kadam Marg, Lower Parel, Mumbai 400 013.<br />
email: circulation@epw.in<br />
54<br />
APRIL 5, 2014 vol xlix no 14 EPW Economic & Political Weekly