Matters India Reporter
HOWRAH, September 18, 2026: A Christian family in West Bengal’s Howrah District has alleged three consecutive days of violent attacks and coercion to renounce their faith.
According to the complaint filed by Putul Manna and her husband Kanchan Manna, the couple has long hosted prayer meetings at their home in Ghoraberia Dakshin Bhatora village, under Bhatora Outpost of Joypur Police Station in Amta, Howrah,
Trouble escalated on September 16 when a mob of nearly 200 people, led by named local residents, stormed their home, demanding they abandon Christianity and convert to Sanatan Hinduism.
The following night, the family was again surrounded and subjected to vulgar abuse and physical assault in front of their minor children.
On September 17, about 40 individuals allegedly launched another attack, throwing household belongings out in an attempted eviction.
Witnesses say Putul Manna was dragged by her hair and beaten, while her husband was also assaulted and that the attackers tried to force the parents to sign a document “disowning” their children.
In her written complaint at the Bhatora Outpost, Putul Manna urged the authorities to take strict legal action.
She pressed for the registration of a police complaint under multiple non‑bailable sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the official criminal code of India, and demanded the immediate arrest of those named in the attacks.
She appealed for emergency police protection to safeguard her husband, herself, and their two minor children, who now live in constant fear.
Above all, she demanded that their constitutional and religious rights be upheld, insisting on the family’s freedom to reside peacefully in their own home without harassment or coercion.
Local police have initiated an investigation and stepped up vigilance around the Bhatora Outpost to maintain law and order.
This incident underscores rising concerns over religious intolerance and minority rights in West Bengal, with civil society urging urgent intervention to safeguard constitutional freedoms and communal harmony.