violence against Christians in India’s northern state of Rajasthan, local media reported Saturday, July 2. "Christians in Rajasthan are living in terror as they have been denied the right to practice their religion and assemble in churches," the CPI(M) said in a statement.
Although many Communists are known to embrace atheism, the party made clear it wants to fight for "the Implementation of the Protection of Places of Worship Act to see that no disputes on religious places arise," BosNewsLife established.
The CPI(M) accused the Rajasthan government led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), a hard-line Hindu party, and its Hindu militant allies of being "responsible for the violence unleashed against the Christian community during the past 18 months."
SEVERAL INCIDENTS
It expressed concern about several recent incidents, which the CPI(M) said were part of an agenda to "terrorize and malign the whole [Christian] community creating a bogey of conversions."
For instance, police did not arrest "criminal elements who unleashed terror on delegates who had come from different parts of the country to attend a convocation ceremony at the Emmanuel Mission International at Kota," said CPI(M) State Secretary Prof. Vasudev.
The CPI(M) leadership also expressed surprise "over the tone and tenor of an enquiry report by the state government" into the Emmanuel Mission incident, as it charged the organization "with indulging in large-scale conversions and spying for foreign countries."
MILITANTS NOT PUNISHED
Vasudev added that police forces failed to punish Hindu militants, including VHP-Bajrang Dal activists "who forcibly intruded" a recent Christian youth festival in Jodhpur by VHP-Bajrang Dal activists."
He stressed that "sadly police registered cases against the victims on charges of attempted conversion while they allowed the law breakers to go…free."
The CPI(M) official noted that "while being a minuscule community in Rajasthan the contribution of Christians in the education sector is immense. It is unfortunate that they are targeted for a vilification campaign and even charged with indulging in spying activities."
RIGHTS VIOLATED
Vasudev claimed that the Constitutional rights of Christians to practice their religion are being challenged in Rajasthan.
CPI(M) appealed "to all secular and democratic forces to come to the support of Christians. Our party would take to the streets for the sake of minority rights and demanding protection for Christians who are doing good [and] a noble service across India."
Last month, the Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI) had appealed to the federal and state governments "to take serious note of the increasing attacks against Church and its personnel across the country."
MISSIONARY WORK ATTACKED
In a statement on June 18, CBCI Secretary General Bishop Percival Fernandez, said there has been "a recent spurt of violence against Church personnel carrying out missionary and charity works in India."
The CBCI said "the guardians of law should make [an] immediate inquiry into these incidents of violence and take appropriate action against the culprits who have been destroying Churches, physically assaulting religious women and intimidating many
others."
"These incidents of violence against the Church make us very concerned as they reflect a pattern of operations against a community, especially [the] most defenseless group, the religious women," Bishop Fernandes said. (Satya Sundar Mishra as BosNewsLife India Reporter based in Orissa. Mishra, 26, is a Development Journalist of Orissa working on social and religious issues that are not yet on the radar screen of media and politicians. He has been working for a variety of key publications and is currently also active as Sub-editor and Senior Reporter with Odisha Bhaskar, a regional daily newspaper. He can be reached via e-mail satya_mishra11@rediffmail.com ).
