By Matters India Reporter
New Delhi, June 4, 2023: Some rightwing Hindu groups have threatened to close two churches of the archdiocese of Delhi that covers the national capital and parts of Haryana state.
The latest incident happened June 4 at St Joseph Vaz Catholic Mission Church, Kherki Daula in Gurugram (Gurgaon) district, Shashi Dharan, the archdiocesan public relations officer, told Matters India.
Just after the 10 am English service, a group of 20-25 people came to the church wearing saffron scarves and carrying tridents and swords on bikes and cars and threatened the priest and two Catholics who were talking to him. They gave the priest two weeks’ time to close the church.
They also said they will not allow the church in the village. They claimed they were from Hindu Sena (army).
Shashi Dharan said one person from the crowd slapped Father Amalraj, who later complained of a hearing problem.
The PRO said a five-member team led by vicar general Father Vincent D’Souza went to Kherki Daula in Gurugram district of Haryana after its parish priest Father Amalraj alerted the archbishop’s house about troubles from Hindu radicals.
After the archdiocesan team’s arrival, three people came to question them. They wanted to know if the Church has permission from the district authorities to open a church there.
Later, around 45 armed people came to the church. Sensing trouble, the investigation officer took the church team to the police station and kept them there until the crowd dispersed. The church team was asked to go to the place on June 5.
The tin-roofed church, built in 2021 on a rented place near Manesar, an industrial hub in Haryana some 60 km south of New Delhi, serves some 40 Hindi speaking and 25 English speaking Catholic families.
Shashi Dharan said the owner of the church property has asked the archdiocese to vacate the place as he was threatened by Hindu radicals.
Earlier on June 1, the archdiocesan team went to Farrukh Nagar in Gurugram district, some 55 km southwest of New Delhi, after the Station House Officer of the police station there asked them to come and discuss a complaint from some village chiefs about a church built there in 2020 to serve seven Catholic families.
As the chiefs did not turn on that day, the church team returned the following day. Chiefs from five villages turned up on that and questioned the church team about the need for a church there. At the same time some 300 people, members of the Bajrang Dal, Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Gau Rakshak (cow protection) teams also came to the station.
The police officer asked the archdiocesan team if they have a document for the church land, which they submitted. However, the Hindu groups said they would not allow the church in the village, Shashi Dharan said.
The archdiocese of Delhi that welcomed Prime Minister Narendra Modi on April 9, Easter Sunday, today struggles to practice the fundamental right to religion guaranteed by the Indian constitution, bemoans a Church observer.
The incidents took place in Haryana state that is now ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party, which also leads the federal coalition government.
God is great
This is Amrit Kaal according to BJP. For them goondaism and hooliganism is Amrit Kaal because during Amrit Kaal there are no jobs so all these illiterate jobless idiots have enough time for such activities. They show their courage and greatness by attacking minorities and threatening helpless people.
God’s wrath and the terrible fury of Divine Voice is already upon these merciless hindu extremists, anti-christ hypocrites and the disastrous anti – people government…
Only God Almighty and Divine Voice alone know the disastrous terror awaiting these hindu extremists who are so mercilessly attacking the defenceless…
India is going to the dark side of the world in name of religion. Very soon there will be a downfall if this nuisance will not stop.
The canard of conversion is just a facade to harass the defenceless. It is like animals and 5he law of the jungle. The strong prey on the weak, except the Lion and Tiger do it to survive.
These hindu fanatics do it out of hate, even tho Christians never preach hate or violence. The RSS and their henchmen have become ronin (Japanese for wild men without the tule of law).
christianity and pastors in India is like sales team who runs with foreign funds. their main objective is to convert bindus to christianity by offering money, food. In my village there used to less than 10 christian families but now 10% of village is converted to Christianity because they get free rice, money every month. Christianity is like plague in India.
The same fate of Karnataka will come to Hindu vadis in North India. Once they lose power all of them will have to face the law. Now their main job is to attack Rahul Gandhi and Christian churches.
We should stand for our fundamental rights to practise religion we must fight for it . We catholics are not doing any forceful conversion .
These churces are involved in conversions. Its high time for Christians and Muslims to know we Hindus are intolerant towards such conversions.
Catholics should not bow down but stand firm in their belief. Stop entertaining these hypocrite leaders when they want to put up pretense of being kind to us.
Political leaders don’t bring religion in politics, it has been from before that the church has been and now all of sudden you people realise that you don’t need us, other hand the PM goes all around the world begging for support💰
Why Indian prime Minister going to Christians country and telling all lies, only interested in money 💰 for crony industrialists Shame
So called fanatics & their political Godfathers are digging their own grave .God’s wrath will descend upon these criminals & anti social elements and they will meet their waterloo soon. God’s children ,continue your fight for your rights and justice . 🙏
Elections are coming in 2024. These poor people who come to Christian place of worship are like puppets for Hindu radicals who will use them as a shield to tell voters in Haryana about forcible conversions of these poor people.
Why doesn’t the Delhi Archdiocese file a case /FIR in the Delhi High court. Do not take the actions of these hindutavadis lightly lightly. Make headlines of our protest and publicly condemn such anti Constitutional activities.
Na tum hindu banega na musalman banega insaan ki aulad hai Insaan banega.
Infact almost every Indian has heard this song but very few people understands the meaning.
We are fighting for nothing.
At the moment you stop breathing and heart stop beating your body becomes dead.
Everybody will call dead body.
You came to this world with nothing and while body is dead you will take nothing .
Yeh duniya yeh mehfil mere kaam ki nahin.
My salute to the one wrote the song.
We must remember we all are human beings, male and female.
Please take note n report to the chief minister of Delhi ASAP. He is only person who can be of help and not anyone at the center.
They are spoiling their own children’s future because they will be uneducated without catholic education privileges
Today’s Catholic prelates “lack the courage of Jesus” who questioned the Pharisees, Law makers and Rulers of his time.
I refer to the welcome given to Modi in the Delhi Cathedral on the Easter day and the meeting with Modi (earlier) and
Amit Shah (recent) in their hotel rooms in Kerala. Today the prelates stoop to any level and surrender themselves before today’s rulers just to “safeguard themselves and their wealth”.This is the bitter truth.