freedom Monday, June 5, after a court declared them "innocent" of homicide charges.
Citing "invented testimonies" and a "lack of evidence" a local court exonerated the Christians, who were accused of murder and attempted murder, BosNewsLife learned Monday, June 5
The 16 people were reportedly taken into custody following clashes between Christians and members of the radical Hindu group Rashtrya Swayam Sevak Sangh (RSS), which took place in January 2004 following the rape and murder of a girl in a Christian school. There was confusion over her age, with some reports saying she was 9 while others said she was 11.
Arun Pal, believed to be an RSS member, was killed and 10 others sustained injuries, Indian media said.
Several churches were also attacked. Police charged 16 Christians under various sections of the Criminal Procedure Code, and they were denied bail both by the Madhya Pradesh High Court and Supreme Court.
VERDICT PUBLISHED
The verdict, published this weekend, was handed down by the Court of Aliraajpur in Jhabalpurt
district. Judges absolved the 16 people from all charges against them for lack of evidence and found that testimonies produced by the prosecution had been “deliberately fabricated and manipulated," Indian media said.
A spokesman for the Indian Bishops’ Conference, Rev. Babu Joseph, said in a statement that the release "will certainly help to strengthen public faith in the judiciary of India. Two years in jail for no crime is a matter of grave concern for all who believe in the values of liberty, fairness and justice."
He added that the ruling will "help to strengthen public faith in the judiciary. Two years in jail for no crime is a matter of grave concern for all who believe in the values of liberty, fairness and justice."
CHURCH "VINDICATED"
Father Anand Muttungal, Madhya Pradesh Bishops’ Conference spokesman, who played an important role in the trial, said the verdict ”vindicated the Church once again" the Indo-Asian News Service reported.
The 14 Christians who spent over two years in jail were identified as Deepak Johnson, 23, Rajender Bhurla, 25, Man Singh Philip, 55, Gamlear Premlal, 21, Kenneth Stefan, 53 Theophil Stefan, 54, Yunus Ram Singh, 35, Wilson Yunatan, 35, Shyam Lal Amos, 45, Amar Singh, 40, Rinkesh Amersingh, 22, Rev. Emmanuel Ariel, 28, Ramesh Chander Bagal, 50, and Rajendra Sunar Singh, 50.
The Christians are reportedly all residents of Puniwat village, and the complaint against them was lodged in the Kathiwada police station in Alirajpur Tehsil.
DEFENSE CONCERNED
Their defense team reportedly warned however that Madhya Pradesh might challenge the trial court’s verdict in the high court as the issue was linked to religion. Local church also cautioned that persecution against Christians in the state continues.
In recent days at least two Christian women were gang raped and a house church meeting broken up by Hindu militants protesting the spread of Christianity and what they call “forced conversions,” said the president of the Globa Council of Indian Christians, Sajan George, in an interview with BosNewsLife.
On Monday, June 5, there was more evidence of tensions as activists of the Hindu Bajrang Dal group raided a press briefing organised by the Madhya Pradesh Christian Association (MPCA) e and threatened its leaders to stop making accusations that bring a bad name to their Hindu right wing organisation, the Indo-Asian News Service said.
MPCA president Indira Iyengar was talking to reporters about the group’s alleged atrocities on Christians, when the activists reportedly arrived in Bhopal, the capital of Madhya Pradesh. They complained of "forced religious conversions of poor tribals" by Christian leaders and presented a tribal couple of Bhopal that claimed it was forced to convert, the news agency reported.(With reports from India and BosNewsLife Research).
