INDORE (UCAN): Bishop Thomas Mathew Kuttimackal of Indore, condemned the harassment of staff from a Church-run school, including a priest and two nuns, while they were on a picnic, by alleged Hindu activists in Madhya Pradesh, India.
Father Sonu Vansuniya, the principal of New Catholic Mission School under the Diocese of Jhabua, recounted on May 2 that “The men stopped us on spotting the nuns and some of our staff wearing rosaries around their necks, and started interrogating us.”
They claimed to be members of the Hindu organisation, Bajrang Dal, or the army of the Hindu god Hanuman, and Father Vansuniya recalled that they “suspected we were carrying out conversion activities.”
He said, “They stopped us from getting into our bus after leaving the park we were visiting, and instead told us to accompany them to the nearest police station.”
When refused, they began questioning members of the staff, mostly from indigenous tribal or Dalit [formerly untouchable backgrounds, asking if “they were being lured or forced to accept Christianity,” he said.
Meanwhile, some police officers arrived at the scene and repeated the same questions. “Failing to find anything wrong or objectionable, the police allowed us to leave after around two hours of harassment in full public view,” Father Vansuniya said.
“This kind of behaviour is not acceptable in a civilised society, and I condemn it,” Bishop Kuttimackal said, appealing to the provincial government in Madhya Pradesh to rein in such groups that target Christians, alleging religious conversion.
This kind of behaviour is not acceptable in a civilised society, and I condemn it
Bishop Thomas Mathew Kuttimackal
The bishop pointed out that the narrative of religious conversion was “totally false.” He said, “We don’t convert anyone through allurement, force, or coercion. We work for the welfare of the people in need, especially those on the periphery of society.”
Madhya Pradesh is one of the 11 states in the country that enforce a draconian anti-conversion law, which criminalises religious conversion.
The incident in Jhabua was the latest reported by Christians against the hardline Hindu groups targeting them and their institutions.
On March 31, two Catholic priests were assaulted by a mob inside a police station in Jabalpur district, where they had rushed to assist tribal Christian pilgrims who had been detained on suspicion of conversion activities.
The 50 pilgrims, including women and children from the tribal-dominated Mandla district, were visiting churches in Jabalpur, about 100 kilometres away, as part of Lenten activities.
The Hindu activists obstructed their path and forcibly took them to the police station, claiming they had undergone religious conversion.
Many Church officials, including bishops, priests, nuns, and laypeople in the state, have complaints filed against them alleging conversion activities.
