(RVA News/UCAN): Approximately 200 activists affiliated with the Vishwa Hindu Parishad [World Council of Hindus] attacked St Louis Parish Church in Jalalkhali village, Nadia district, West Bengal, India, on October 9. The incident forced the early conclusion of a four-day Santali Bible convention after church property was damaged and several people were reportedly injured.
The mob arrived in vehicles and armed with bricks and bamboo sticks at around 6:00pm and attempted to force their way onto the church grounds, UCAN reported parish priest, Vincentian Father Jithin Muthukattil, as recounting.
Local authorities ordered the gathering to be closed due to security concerns, and the Diocese of Krishnanagar subsequently advised organisers to disperse participants for their safety.
The Santali are an indigenous people concentrated in eastern India, particularly West Bengal, Jharkhand, Odisha, and Bihar. Members follow various religious traditions, including Christianity. According to RVA News, the convention brought together Santali-speaking Christians and others interested in the faith.
The incident forced the early conclusion of a four-day Santali Bible convention after church property was damaged and several people were reportedly injured
According to an incident report by one witness, Father Michael Adesar, the attackers threw stones at the church premises, damaging property, including the protective glass covering a statue of Divine Mercy.
When local Catholic residents attempted to defend the premises and protest, they were reportedly attacked with bricks and bamboo sticks, resulting in several injuries.
The attackers did not enter the main Divine Retreat House grounds, where convention delegates were accommodated.
As tensions escalated, authorities instructed organisers to halt the gathering, citing security concerns and the absence of required administrative approval for an assembly of that scale under the prevailing circumstances.
However, Father Vincent V.C., head of the organising committee, had reportedly obtained permission from the district magistrate to hold the convention and use loudspeakers. Organisers had also informed the local police station about the programme and expected attendance.
According to an incident report by one witness, Father Michael Adesar, the attackers threw stones at the church premises, damaging property, including the protective glass covering a statue of Divine Mercy
“We strongly condemn this attack,” said Herod Mullick, founding state secretary of Bangiya Christiya Pariseba, a forum representing Christians of different denominations in West Bengal.
“The attackers are becoming increasingly desperate, yet the government unfortunately remains silent. This silence indirectly signals tolerance, if not encouragement, of such violence,” RVA News reported him as saying.
“They have made false allegations, claiming that participants of the convention threw stones first, which is completely untrue,” he said, calling for a swift and impartial investigation into the incident and other reported attacks on Christian communities.
The annual gathering brought together Santali-speaking Christians, catechumens, and people exploring the Christian faith. More than 1,900 participants had registered on October 8, the opening day, and organisers expected attendance to reach about 2,500 over the course of the event. Many had travelled from distant areas to attend.
“This is the worst kind of violence we have experienced in our diocese,” Bishop Nirmol Vincent Gomes of Krishnanagar said on October 11. He added that diocesan priests and nuns filed a police complaint on October 9, urging authorities to arrest those responsible and ensure the safety of “shaken and frightened Catholics living in fear.”
