Correspondent, NewsCrunch
Indian Christians celebrated Christmas with caution on Monday following a spate of attacks from radical Hindu groups on festivities.
Hindu groups have targeted the run-up to Christmas celebrations across the country alleging that the festivities were just a cloak for missionaries to convert Hindus forcefully.
On December 21, Hindu activists allegedly disrupted singing of Hindi carols at the Aligarh Church of Ascension, a tradition which goes back 1858. A small group of men forced their way inside and kicked the musical instruments and shouted anti-Christian slogans.
Hardline Hindu activists had also sent letters warning Christian schools in Aligarh against involving Hindu students in Christmas activities.
On December 19, Hindu extremists allegedly raided a community centre in a village in Pratapgarh, Rajasthan, where Christmas celebrations were being held. They threw copies of Bible and posters of Jesus Christ to ground and roughed up participants.
On December 14, police detained an entire choir of 35 members, which was going door to door singing carols and celebrating Christmas in Satna, Madhya Pradesh. A Hindu militant organisation alleged that they were converting Hindus in the region.
On December 9, Hindu activists allegedly attacked and vandalised a prayer hall in Coimbatore disrupting Christmas celebrations. A pastor, Karthik, suffered an injury to his head, and a woman suffered a fracture, and a few others suffered minor injuries.
There have been other incidents as well in which even families praying inside their homes have allegedly been targeted.
Taking note of the attacks, Cardinal Baselios Cleemis, the president of Catholic Bishops Conference of India, (CBCI), said the minority community was losing faith in the Narendra Modi-led BJP government.
The Cardinal also pointed out that attacks by Hindu groups targeting Christians across India have increased since the Hindu nationalist BJP came to power in 2014.
Cardinal Cleemis also led a delegation to meet Home Minister Rajnath Singh, the country’s top security official, and complained that the police were playing a biased role and not acting against the attackers.
Christians constitute 2.4% of India’s over 1.3 billion population.
Indian Christians celebrated Christmas with caution on Monday following a spate of attacks from radical Hindu groups on festivities.
Hindu groups have targeted the run-up to Christmas celebrations across the country alleging that the festivities were just a cloak for missionaries to convert Hindus forcefully.
On December 21, Hindu activists allegedly disrupted singing of Hindi carols at the Aligarh Church of Ascension, a tradition which goes back 1858. A small group of men forced their way inside and kicked the musical instruments and shouted anti-Christian slogans.
Hardline Hindu activists had also sent letters warning Christian schools in Aligarh against involving Hindu students in Christmas activities.
On December 19, Hindu extremists allegedly raided a community centre in a village in Pratapgarh, Rajasthan, where Christmas celebrations were being held. They threw copies of Bible and posters of Jesus Christ to ground and roughed up participants.
On December 14, police detained an entire choir of 35 members, which was going door to door singing carols and celebrating Christmas in Satna, Madhya Pradesh. A Hindu militant organisation alleged that they were converting Hindus in the region.
On December 9, Hindu activists allegedly attacked and vandalised a prayer hall in Coimbatore disrupting Christmas celebrations. A pastor, Karthik, suffered an injury to his head, and a woman suffered a fracture, and a few others suffered minor injuries.
There have been other incidents as well in which even families praying inside their homes have allegedly been targeted.
Taking note of the attacks, Cardinal Baselios Cleemis, the president of Catholic Bishops Conference of India, (CBCI), said the minority community was losing faith in the Narendra Modi-led BJP government.
The Cardinal also pointed out that attacks by Hindu groups targeting Christians across India have increased since the Hindu nationalist BJP came to power in 2014.
Cardinal Cleemis also led a delegation to meet Home Minister Rajnath Singh, the country’s top security official, and complained that the police were playing a biased role and not acting against the attackers.
Christians constitute 2.4% of India’s over 1.3 billion population.