BJP's Ballia MP calls Christian missionaries 'threat to country's unity'

Claiming that Christian missionaries are a threat to the unity and integrity of the country, BJP MP Bharat Singh has accused the Congress party of working on their directives.

"Christian missionaries control the Congress. Sonia Gandhi, the mother of Congress president Rahul Gandhi works on the directions of these missionaries. These missionaries are
a threat for the unity of the country," Singh said while talking to reporters on Saturday.

Singh also alleged that the democracy in the northeastern states of the country has "weakened" due to "conversion of people there into Christianity."  "The North-East is under the influence of Christian missionaries. Democracy has weakened due to the conversion of people into Christianity there. The conspiracies hatched by these missionaries are a threat for the country," he added.

The Ballia MP, incidentally, had also alleged recently that the Christian missionaries were behind the vandalisation of the statues of the Dalit icon and key architect of the Indian Constitution,  Bhim Rao Ambedkar.

More attacks on Indian Christians at Sunday worship

Christian worship services and prayer meetings across India are often targeted by Hindu radicals. Last Sunday in Bihar and the Sunday before in Uttar Pradesh, worship services were disrupted by armed men who assaulted the pastors and, in Bihar, the entire congregation including women and children.

Uttar Pradesh: Pastor and wife severely assaulted during Sunday worship but warned not to get medical attention or complain to police

Pastor Lalta Prasad, 58, and his wife were assaulted by four masked men with wooden sticks during their church’s worship service on Sunday 29 May. The church is located in the village of Naupur, Jaunpur district, in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.

Pastor Prasad (left) with his wife and a member of his church who was also injured in the attack

Around 50-55 Christians were present at the church when the attack took place. Amongst those present were women, children and the elderly, all of whom escaped. The men in the church remained and attempted to rescue Pastor Lalta Prasad and his wife, but they too were attacked.

The attack lasted for 15-20 minutes, before the assailants fled on their motor bikes.

Both Prasad and his wife were taken to the police station and then to the district hospital for treatment.

Dinanath Jaiswar, a church leader from the city of Varanasi who visited the couple on Tuesday (7 June), said to Barnabas Fund, “The doctor on duty warned the couple of the consequences of getting a medical examination done and on filing a case against the assaulters on the basis of the medical test. The couple got extremely frightened and agreed not to get into further trouble and decided not to proceed with the medical examination and thus the police complaint was not filed”.

Jaiswar added, “The political pressure on the police and the medical staff is evident in this case”.

Prasad sustained internal injuries to his head, back, face, legs and muscle tissues, while his wife is unable to stand due to the many blows she received to her back. “They have been very tactfully attacked with no blood and no fractures, so that their injuries would not seem severe to the police”, said Jaiswar.

Prasad, his family and members of the church remain in shock after the attack. According to Jaiswar, “there has been no church service [since the attack] and it seems that the assaulters have been successful in their motives”.

In March this year, Prasad received threats from a group of Hindu extremists and a complaint against him was lodged with the District Magistrate (DM), falsely alleging that he was enticing Hindus into Christianity with the promise of money or employment. The DM ordered an enquiry and instructed the police to look into the matter.

The police investigated Prasad and other Christians, and submitted their report to the Sub Divisional Magistrate (SDM) stating that, “These Christians only pray and worship; they pray in the name of Jesus and healings take place; they do not do any conversion activity.”

Jaiswar comments that “the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh [a Hindu nationalist organisation] were shocked that the police were supportive of the Christians and thus they explored other means to stop Pastor Prasad from ministering to the people”. 

Bihar: Pastor and church members brutally attacked by mob of Hindu extremists; further attacks feared in revenge for arrest of one person

On Sunday 5 June, a mob of 25 Hindu extremists belonging to the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) stormed into a church in the city of Patna, in the Indian state of Bihar, brutally assaulting its pastor and all those attendence, including women and children, with bamboo sticks, belts and stones. Many sustained severe injuries and were admitted to hospital. One arrest has so far been made in connection with the attack.

Meeting together in India as Christians can carry great risk.jpg

Meeting together in India as Christians can carry great risk

The incident began at around 1:30pm at the India Mission Centre at Kas Mahal, Patna, when two young men, disguised as students and living in the neighbourhood of the church, disrupted the worship service. The men argued with church members, accusing them of conversion activity. Stones and verbal abuse were thrown by the two men, who have since been identified as Vishnu Kumar and Rahul Kumar.

“The church service was disrupted by members of the ABVP disguised as students. They stormed the venue, created a disturbance and proceeded to beat the Christians present using their belts. They also pelted stones at the women and children present,” said Arun Kumar, a local church leader, speaking to Barnabas Fund.

“When Pastor Meera Rani attempted to intervene in the situation, she too was beaten up by the attackers,” Kumar added.

The attackers were soon joined by Golu Kumar and a mob of around 25 people, all from the ABVP. The Akhil Bhartiya Vidhyarthi Parishad (ABVP) is the student wing of the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP), the main political power in the Indian government. ABVP is known to be violently opposed to minority groups.

“Soon a mob also came and joined the attackers. They beat the Christians present with bamboo sticks, used their belts on women and children, and pelted stones. The pastor was beaten up again,” Kumar said to Barnabas Fund. “Many of the Christians were seriously injured and had to be admitted to the local hospital for treatment and first aid”.

Kumar added, “Pastor Meera Rani suffered a fracture in one of her fingers, her back is blue with the beating and she also received a cut under her ear”.

The police are investigating the case and so far one person has been arrested, but this in itself may lead to further attacks on the church.

“The attackers have threatened the church members and the pastor that they will take revenge as one of them is under arrest,” said Arun Kumar. “The ABVP people have warned the Christians not to conduct any more worship services in the church or else next Sunday they will come with guns and swords and will kill the Christians and cut them to pieces.”

The church has approached the police for protection and they have assured them of this. However, the landlord in whose property the church has been meeting is now under pressure and has asked the church to vacate the property by Sunday (12 June). The church has been meeting together in the area for the last six years but has only been meeting at their current location for the last six months.

“Tension and fear prevails. We ask that you pray for our protection, so that we can worship in safety without fear for our lives,” pleaded Kumar.

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Bihar, Hindu extremists attack Pentecostal communities and torture a Christian

The faithful of a Pentecostal community of Nabinagar assaulted, the pastor beaten harshly and other religious beaten; a Barh Christian kidnapped and tortured for hours, after he had refused to insult the name of God. These are the last two episodes of violence perpetrated by radical Hindus in the state of Bihar, who have taken on the Christians accusing them of forced conversions. Sajan K George, president of the Global Council of Indian Christians, toldAsiaNews " intolerance against Christians is growing in secular India."

The Christian leaders said that the Gems Pentecostal community (Gospel Echoing Missionary Society) of Nabinagar was attacked on April 10 during a peaceful rally titled "Holiness of Holiness", organized by the congregation. The local faithful - about 200 people - "were gathered from April 8 to 10 without provocation - he explains - But on the last day, after the naming ceremony of a group of 30 Christians, about 35 radicals belonging to theBajrang Dal [Hindu nationalists, the young and militant wing of the Vishva Hindu Parishad, ed] raided the prayer meeting".

Sajan K George also reports that the police immediately rushed to the place, but most agents flanked the molesters. The officers did not want to register the case against the Hindus, while they arrested the pastor on three counts, two of which do not provide for his release on bail. "It is very worrying - he says - that the police are biased against the Christian minority, while the should maintain order and protect citizens."

The attackers first ordered Jebakumar Dhanraj, who organized the convention, to leave the church. Once outside, they beat him. Then they beat other believers and missionaries and the pastor Suresh Lakhra.

The second episode of persecution against Christians occurred on April 5. Extremists of the Bajrang Dal and the RSS [Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, Hindu nationalists, ed] stopped another Christian, Deepak, on his way to the village of Chak Budhani to spread the message of God. They took him into a Hindu center, and beat him on his head, legs and neck with chains.

The man was savagely tortured for five hours, with the use of chains, rods, sickles and shoes. The attackers then rubbed alcohol on his bleeding wounds and forced him to undress and to drink urine. They then took his clothes to hide the traces of their crime and wrote a false statement accusing the man of having offered thousands of rupees for forced conversions. The extremists have also tried to make him insult the name of God, with electrical shocks and threatened to throw him on railroad tracks. But the religious man refused and answered: "Kill me, but I will never insult the name of God."

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Christians reject re-conversions in Bihar depite pressure

The much-hyped “ghar wapsi” event organised by the VHP proved to be a damp squib as none of the 42 converted Christian Manjhi families —who were provided adequate police security — turned up at the”purification” function on Monday.

Around 50 villagers, mostly OBC Yadavas who are already Hindus, attended the function that saw a havan amid chants of Vedic mantras and distribution of saffron scarfs and tulsi necklaces.

The VHP leaders, however, claimed some Christians attended the ghar wapsi event organised near Atiya village. Gaya BJP MP Hari Manjhi, who had visited the village on December 26 and was supposed to attend the function, stayed away because of “political reasons”.

VHP’s prant sanrakshak Uday Kumar Verma said the outfit would set up one-teacher school or ekal vidyalaya where the village students would also be taught about Hindu values.

The Gaya district administration, which had received complaints from some Manjhi families about the VHP leaders putting pressure on them to reconvert, had deployed adequate forces at Manjhi settlements and also succeeded in forcing the saffron outfit to organise the “ghar wapsi” at some distance from their houses to avoid clashes. The 42 converted families have altogether 198 members.

The police said it was only a complaint and there was no need to convert it into an FIR. A police picket has also been opened at the village.

Bodh Manjhi, Anil Manjhi and Vinod Manjhi, who represented the converted families before the local MP two days ago, stayed at their homes on Monday. Pastor Rajkishore’s family, who used to stay at village community hall, reportedly has left the area fearing backlash from Hindus.

One of the converts Vikram Manjhi said: “We are happy being Christians. We did not succumb to VHP pressure to reconvert. Once we have converted, there will be no looking back”.

Shivshanker Manjhi said the families were happy with “education and health services” being provided by missionaries. “For last three days, the VHP leaders had been after us for ghar wapsi. We told it to the police. We have nothing to do with the VHP function”, said Shivshanker, who spoke in broken English at times to make an impression. When asked about who provided handpumps, irate village women said it was “missionary, not the government”.

Those who took part in the “ghar wapsi” exposed the VHP’s claims on reconversion. Chandrika Yadav, a villager who attended the function, said: “I am very much a Hindu and attended havan because I did not find anything wrong with it. I am very much at home and where is question of ghar wapsi.” Though some Manjhis did attend the fumction, they were Hindus and from another area of the village.

As priests talked about importance of cow protection and Ganga cleanliness and chanted mantras invoking Hindu deities, a village youngster quipped: “Hindu ko hi Hindu bana rahe hai (they are converting Hindus to Hindus).”

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Dalit Christian converts in Bihar seek police protection, accuse Sangh of intimidation

GAYA: The 42 "mahadalit" (in the traditional Indian caste system a member of the lowest caste) families that recently converted to Christianity have sought police protection and alleged that several outfits of the Hindu right-wing have been threatening them to reconvert to Hinduism.

In a petition, with two pages of signatures, the new converts have accused the VHP, the RSS and the Bajrang Dal of indulging in intimidation to get them back to the Hindu fold. The petitioners said that they had embraced Christianity on their own free will.

According to the petition addressed to the Bodh Gaya SHO, a group of 30-40 intruders raided the Christan hamlet around midnight on Saturday. But when the vigilantes challenged them, the intruders made a hasty retreat.

Shiv Shankar Masih, the first dalit from the village who embraced Christianity way back in 2007 and now leads the new converts of the village told the TOI on Monday morning that activists of the VHP, the Bajrang Dal and the RSS have been visiting the village to issue threats to the converts.

The converts have been warned that they will be deprived of all the benefits of government schemes and driven out of the village if they did not come back to the Hindu fold.

Shiv Shankar Masih alleged that on Sunday evening, Gaya MP Hari Manjhi offered Masih a government job if he returned to the Hindu fold. However, nobody has been specifically named in the petition submitted to the local SHO.

When contacted, MP Hari Manjhi denied Masih's allegation. Conceding that he went to the village after the eruption of the conversion controversy, the MP said that he was against the use of coercion and enticement both in conversion and reconversion.

"If the misguided villagers came back to the Hindu fold on their own, fine. Else, good luck to them," said Manjhi. Asked about his more than conspicuous absence from the VHP sponsored "ghar wapsi" homecoming reconversion programme, the MP said that he had more pressing engagements elsewhere.

Asked about the petition submitted by the recently converted dalits, Gaya SSP Nishant Tiwari said that he had neither seen nor been informed about it. The SSP also denied that any group had raided Atia village on Saturday night.

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Christians forcibly converted into HInduism by VHP in Bihar

Three of the dozen Hindus who converted to Christianity in two Bihar villages have returned to the Hindu fold after they were threatened with a social boycott, an official said Thursday.

Nearly a dozen poor Hindus, including women, were converted to Christianity at Barohiya village and Gangaldeh villages in Bhagalpur district, 200 km from here, early this week.

“Three of those who converted to Christianity have returned to Hindu fold at a ‘ghar wapasi’ (returning home) ceremony by the VHP,” police official Durgesh Kumar said.

He has denied that villagers threatened those converted and said that the village is peaceful.

“Police have been closely monitoring the situation in the village and will not allow any one to create trouble,” he said.

But a villager, who did not want to be quoted, said that those converted to Christianity were given an ultimatum of social boycott by the villagers.

Rakesh Sinha, a local Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader, said the three were persuaded by a VHP team to return to Hindu fold.

Right-wing Hindu organisations have alleged that Christian missionaries allured them to convert by promising them money.

Sinha said the VHP, Bajrang Dal and the RSS will protest against Hindus being converted to Christianity by allurement.

A probe began Wednesday after Bhagalpur District Magistrate Virendra Prasad Yadav had ordered to look into the conversions.

According to villagers, those converted had been suffering from some health problems and were suggested to follow Christian practices as remedial measures, and hence they converted.

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Church Locked Up, Christians attacked in Bihar

Hindu extremists locked up a church on June 5 after they beat up a Christian family in Balwanazir, Kaliyanganj, Bihar.
According to our correspondent, Pastor A. Abraham, the extremists repeatedly beat up Sadanandan Singh and his family for their faith in Christ on May and June and finally locked up the church of the Indian Evangelical Team.
Singh and his family were dragged on the road and the entire family including two minor girls were beaten up mercilessly.
"The extremists have locked up the church and told Singh that he is not allowed to pray in the future in the village." area pastor Laxmi Prasad told EFI News.
Singh and his family were socially boycotted ever since they decided to follow Christ in 2010.
Police complaint was submitted. However no action has been taken at press time.

Source: EFI NEWS

Christian meet attacked in Bihar by Bajrang Dal activists

Patna, Jan 30 (IANS) Tension gripped a Bihar town after a Christian prayer meet was attacked by suspected Bajrang Dal activists, injuring several people.

According to police, a group of armed men Sunday attacked the meet at a Christian missionary in Sasaram in Rohtas district, 200 km from here. They beat up people present there, tore down posters and burnt books and leaflets.

Complaints have been filed against nine Bajrang Dal activists.

The injured were immediately admitted to hospital.

Witness said that about 40 masked men attacked the Christian prayer meet and warned against holding similar weekly meetings, said K.K. Sharma, Deputy Superintendent of Police (Sasaram).

"The attackers shouted slogans against the conversion of Hindus to Christianity," he added.

Bajrang Dal leaders in the district were apparently unhappy over the missionary converting many Dalits. In the last two months, nearly 50 Dalit families have reportedly converted to Christianity.

IANS