Accused in a number of murders and acts of vandalism, Manoj Pradhan is now a free man after the Orissa High Court accepted his application for bail. On 29 June, a lower court had sentenced him to seven years in prison for murder. “This decision will undermine the peace process on Kandhamal District,” says a spokesman and lawyer for the Diocese of Cuttack-Bhubaneshwar.

Mumbai (AsiaNews) – The Orissa High Court has released on bail Manoj Pradhan, a Hindu fundamentalist, after his lawyers launched an appeal. A prominent figure in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), he is blamed for a number of murders and acts of vandalism during the anti-Christian pogrom of 2008. The court’s ruling on Wednesday overturns an earlier decision by a lower court in Phulbani, which sentenced Pradhan to seven years in prison and fined him Rs 5,000 (US$ 110)

“It is a mockery of the justice system,” said Fr Dibyasingh Parichha, spokesman and lawyer for the Diocese of Cuttack-Bhubaneshwar. “One court convicts him and another one grants him bail.” For the clergyman, this decision will undermine the peace process on Kandhamal District.

Prior to this conviction, Pradhan, who is a BJP lawmaker, was acquitted on seven counts, including three for murder.

He is accused of involvement in seven murders and seven fire bombings against Christians.

Thanks to the High Court’s decision, he will be able to wait for the next legal proceeding against him as a free man. (N.C.)

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