Bhubaneswar July 23 - To 'forget the past and build a cohesive society', a Christian group in Orissa Thursday said it will mark as peace and harmony day Aug 23, when a Hindu leader was murdered last year triggering communal riots in the state.

'Peace and harmony were shattered following the gruesome murder of Swami (Laxmanananda Saraswati). Let us forget the past and build a cohesive society, ravaged by some criminals,' Archbishop of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar Raphael Cheenath told reporters.

'It is the evil design of the criminals to divide the civil society on religious lines, which should be thwarted', he said.

He appealed to the state government to ensure security of minority communities and places of worship on the 'sensitive day' in the state.