New Delhi, Sept 23, 2020: India witnessed 31 incidents of attacks on Christians in August this year. Majority of those attacks were reported from Uttar Pradesh in north and Chhattisgarh in central India, both states reporting 11 incidents each.
The month saw a significant rise in such incidents as the country entered the fourth stage of lifting the nationwide lockdown.
As many as 18 incidents were recorded in the last week of August. Incidents range from threats and intimidation by mobs to severe physical assaults.
A new trend is the dissemination of misinformation threatening the existence of a healthy inclusive community. Some news reports in Uttar Pradesh describe religious conversion as an unlawful activity, although it is a fundamental right guaranteed to all Indian citizens under Article 25 of the Constitution.
Unbiased reports, however, show the Christian community is law abiding and benevolent to fellow citizens.
A headline of an August 30 news report in Amar Ujala (Eternal flame),a Hindi newspaper, read, “Police arrives on information about religious conversions in Rae Bareli, seven arrested.”
People also come across in local dailies headlines such as “Christian homes raided” or “Bibles confiscated.” Such false claims made consistently by these newspapers foment bias against minorities. Such reports gradually delude common people to believe that religious conversion is an unlawful activity.
For instance, on August 14, a group of villagers acting under the influence of some religious extremists barged into a pastor’s house in Damoh, Madhya Pradesh, and assaulted him with sticks.
The attackers alleged that he shares about his faith in Jesus Christ with other villagers. The pastor suffered head injuries and lost a tooth. The attackers also assaulted his wife and mother aged 72 years.
Another incident of harassment occurred on August 31 in Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh. Two pastors were visiting the new house of a friend when some 80 people barged in and accused the visitors of religious conversions. The house owner said the pastors had come to just pray and no religious conversions took place as the mob alleged.
Source: mapviolence.in
But where had it happened in Chhattisgarh?Need to spell out the exact places, persons and dates.
There is a time for everything and in the present surcharged atmosphere it is better to keep evangelical work on the back burner.
Christian communities in India must be vigilante about the false news spread all the 24 hours by some fanatics using mostly iliterate villagers . The truth mustbe impartially found and widely publisbed by every means avaikable. Local police. must be contacted immediately fro taking steps like raid, arrest etc.
K J George