Murder of Swami Lakshmanananda

Swami Lakshmanananda Saraswati and four of his disciples were murdered on August 23, 2008 in the State of Odisha in India. Swami Lakshmanananda was a Hindu monk and a highly revered spiritual leader who lived a life dedicated to the welfare of the vanavasis (or those Indians belonging to the Constitutional Category of "Scheduled Tribes") of Kandhamal.

Swami Lakshamanananda was on his way to visit Brahmanigoan village when a bus belonging to Mr. Sugriba Singh, a Panna Christian leader and BJD Member of Parliament (Lower House) obstructed the road. Swami was attacked on the spot- Swami, his driver and his security guard had all sustained injuries. In a statement, Swami Lakshamanananda had identified Radha Kanta Nayak, an Indian National Congress Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha, as being involved in the attack. Radha Kanta Nayak also served as chief of the Christian-evangelical organization World Vision. Swami Lakshmananda had further stated that this was the seventh time that they had failed to kill him.

The Swami received an anonymous threat only a week before his assassination. Ashram authorities also filed a First Information Report (or FIR) with the local police. However, no steps were taken to provide appropriate security cover to Swamiji, despite ample evidence that there were very real threats being made on his life and the lives of those he served. The Government of Odisha would later admit that lapses might have occurred in his security and would place Kandhamal Superintendent of Police Nikhil Kanodia and officer-in-charge of Tumudibandha police station Jena under suspension.

Swami Lakshamanananda was murdered on Janmashtami Day of 2008 while visiting with pupils at the Kanya Ashram (a residential girls' school) in Tumudibandh, about 100 km from Phulbani, the district headquarters of Kandhamal district. Four of his disciples, including a boy, were also killed by gunfire.

The Kanya Ashram housed 130 girls on the day of the Janmashtami festival and many of the girls were eyewitnesses to the killing, as reported by Indian Express. A group of thirty to forty armed men surrounded the Ashram. Four of the assailants carried AK-47s and many others had locally made revolvers. Two of the four government provided security guards had gone home to eat, the assailants tied and gagged the two remaining guards.

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Wikipedia