abu-alwafa

Hindu Sent To Gallows For Killing Australian Missionary

BHUBANESWAR, India, September 23 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) - An
Indian judge slapped a death sentence against a Hindu fanatic who killed an
Australian missionary and his two sons, charging he wanted to "bury" the
spread of Christianity.

Graham Staines and his two young sons in the eastern Indian state of Orissa
was the "rarest of the rare", reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).

"He formed a militant group of local tribals to physically liquidate Staines
on the belief that with Staines the spread of Christianity will be buried in
the area," Pattnaik said.

The judge also sentenced 12 others to life in prison, saying he spared them
the gallows because they were manipulated by Singh.

"The rest of the convicts who are gullible tribals blindly followed him
(Singh)," Pattnaik ruled.

Singh, an anti-conversion activist and radical vegetarian, was convicted of
leading a mob which surrounded Staines' station wagon on January 23, 1999,
as the missionary and his children slept in the remote village of
Manoharpur.

The crowd chanted anti-Christian slogans and blocked the Australians' escape
by brandishing axes before torching the car, burning to death Staines and
his sons Philip, 8, and Timothy, 10.

"A crime has no religion. What sin (had) the two small boys committed?" the
judge said.

"The Manoharpur massacre speaks loudly that humanity is not yet fully
civilized."

Staines, a 57-year-old Baptist missionary, had worked in India since 1965
treating leprosy patients.

The judge said the Australians' work led to the conversion of some rural
Indians who distanced themselves from non-Christians "and adopted the
anti-customary practice of eating beef ".

"Some of the non-Christian tribals in Manoharpur and nearby villages,
seething at the behavior of the tribal converts, found a messiah in Dara
Singh," Pattnaik said.

A newspaper report Sunday, quoting investigators, said the extremists
decided to kill Staines after seeing Indians eat beef, which is forbidden by
Hinduism.

The judge said Singh presented himself as a "savior of cows".

"Dara Singh with his group of men headed a crusade against Muslims trading
in cattle, attacked their trucks transporting cattle, rescued and
distributed cattle among the tribals and burnt trucks," the judge wrote.

Singh, whose real name is Ravindra Pal, was arrested in Orissa's forests a
year after the Staines murders.

He has also been accused of killing a Roman Catholic priest and a Muslim
businessman in Orissa.

The death sentence must be confirmed by higher courts and Singh's lawyer has
already appealed his conviction.

Gallows Opposed

While the Australian high commission (Embassy) in New Delhi had no comment
on the judge's decision to impose the death penalty, the missionary's
brother argued against it, fearing it would stir up more extremism.

"It is the Indian legal system that has decided to impose the maximum
punishment available under Indian law," said a high commission spokesman,
who added that Australia "appreciated the commitment of Indian authorities"
in prosecuting the case.

Australia does not have capital punishment.

"I didn't want to see the man put to death," John Staines said in Melbourne,
Australia.

"He has to answer to God for what he did," he said.

The missionary's widow Gladys Staines has publicly f****ven the killers but
did not offer an opinion on the death sentence.

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