AHMEDABAD, INDIA, January 29, 2001: An article in the Washington Times by Janaki Kremmer reports that a Catholic priest, Father Cedric Prakash, director of the Saint Xavier’s Social Service Society, came to help at a hospital here. Prakash claimed he was shouted at by Hindu volunteers and pushed around until he left. He said, “Hindu hotheads are trying to dominate the rescue effort.” The most massive volunteer presence in the earthquake area is the RSS, or National Volunteer Corps, India’s single largest social service organization. Prakash did not explicitly attribute his treatment at the hospital to the RSS. Tensions over the presence of Christian relief organizations are bound to surface as such organizations generally regard disasters as an opportunity to preach their gospel and make converts.
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