New Delhi - A leading human rights group criticised the Indian government yesterday for failing to prevent a rash of violence against Christians and accused it of exploiting communal tensions for political ends.
Human Rights Watch traced the attacks to the rise of the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which came to power at the head of a coalition government in early 1998. "Attacks against Christians . . . point to a disturbing trend of the assertion of Hindu nationalism by governments in power at the state and central level," the report said.