Communal violence has been the bane of this nation. Right from the birth of independent India and the horrors of partition, the communal violence that followed continue to scar the psyche of the nation.

In Karnataka, churches and prayer halls have been vandalised and the Holy Bible, Holy Eucharist, the Tabernacle and statues have been desecrated. 5000 villagers have been rendered homeless in Kandhamal district of Orissa.

We need to recall the work done by . Jawaharlal Nehru in countering communal violence after the birth of independent India. The National Integration Council (NIC) owes its establishment to the initiative taken him in the wake of major communal conflagrations in Jabalpur and other places in central India. He convened a national integration conference in September, 1961 to find ways to combat communalism, casteism, regionalism, linguistic chauvinism and narrow mindedness. The NIC held its first meeting on June 2 and 3, 1962. Specific policy measures like broad-basing recruitment to central paramilitary forces, issuing guidelines to deal strictly with outbreaks of communal violence, and insertion of stricter penal provisions were the result of consensus arrived at by the council.

The NIC was last re-constituted in February 2005 after a gap of 15 years. The NIC consists of the prime minister as the chairperson, with 141 members. Dr. Manmohan Singh while inaugurating the proceedings, identified “communalism, casteism, regionalism and linguism” as the banes of national integration. Now, in the background of communal violence and atrocities perpetuated against Christians in Orissa, Karnataka and many other parts of the country, Dr Singh has convened a meeting of the National Integration Council on October 13, 2008.

... contd.