A congregation attending Sunday Mass in Maharashtra’s Kolhapur
district was attacked by a group of masked men armed with swords and
iron rods, police said on Tuesday. Around 25 people had gathered for
their weekly Sunday prayer at the residence of one Bhimsen Chavan in
Kowad village, which borders Karnataka, when the incident happened.
The incident comes on the back of a debate on intolerance against
minorities in the country. A group of 10 to 15 masked men armed with
swords, iron rods and glass bottles reached the event venue on
motorcycles around noon and tried to barge into the house, PTI quoted
police as saying.
The masked men also threw stones at the congregation, injuring 12
people in the process. However, a group of women, who were part of the
prayer meeting, thwarted their attempt to enter the house by throwing
chilly powder. The injured have been admitted to hospital and their
condition is stated to be stable.
Senior police officials said the situation was now under control but
they were keeping a close watch in the area. A police official said even
though they were yet to come to a conclusion on the motive behind the
attack, prima facie it seemed the intention was to disturb the prayer
meeting.
Police have registered a case of rioting and attempt to murder
against unidentified people. Kolhapur Superintendent of Police Abhinav
Deshmukh visited the spot on Tuesday and is supervising the
investigation. The attackers most probably had come from Belagavi in
Karnataka.
Police have already recorded the statements of people who had seen
the attackers. The CCTV footage of the area was also being scanned, the
official said and expressed hope that the attackers would be nabbed
soon.
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