Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has condemned the alleged assault on Catholic priests and nuns in Odisha’s Jaleswar on August 6.
Taking to his X handle, the Chief Minister posted, “Reports of an assault on Keralite Catholic priests and nuns by Sangh Parivar goons in Jaleswar, Odisha, on false charges of religious conversion, reflect the ongoing communal witch-hunt against Christians in the country, exemplified by the arrest of nuns in Chhattisgarh weeks ago. Such Hindutva vigilantism, enabled by the regime’s impunity, must be unitedly resisted by secular & democratic forces.”
No Complaint
Meanwhile, Odisha Police refuted these allegations, saying the nuns and priests were not harmed and that no complaint had been filed. “We got to know that there was a death ritual. All those present belonged to one community. There were some heated arguments over something, but the matter did not come to the police,” TOI reported, quoting Basta SDPO Manas Deo.
Basta police IIC Ranjit Sahu said a police team reached the village after receiving a call from a local person about the incident and managed to disperse the crowd. “There was tension when the police team reached the spot. But we managed to convince them that they had come to attend the memorial service. The nuns and priests were not harmed in any manner,” Sahu told The Indian Express.
He further stated that no written or oral complaint was lodged in this regard. “We have done a station diary entry of the incident for the sake of record,” the inspector said.
Police also said they had no information about allegations that mobile phones of the priests and others were forcibly taken by the mob.
CBCI Seeks Swift Action
On Friday, Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI) had urged the central and state government for strict action against those involved in the attack.
CBCI president Archbishop Mar Andrews Thazhath said that the priests and nuns had gone to attend prayer meetings, dismissing accusations of religious conversion. It was alleged that around 70 Bajrang Dal activists allegedly assaulted two Catholic priests, a catechist, and two nuns from Kerala at a village near Jaleswar while they were returning at around 8 pm on August 6 after attending a memorial service at the home of a Christian believer, who had passed away two years ago. The attackers physically assaulted them, tore their clothes and snatched away their mobile phones, the Mathrubhumi reported.
The report further claimed that they were later rescued by police, who arrived after nearly half an hour.
Congress MP Hibi Eden also gave notice of an adjournment motion in the Lok Sabha, seeking a discussion on the alleged attack. He alleged that the attackers falsely accused the church members of religious conversion and assaulted them. He termed the incident as a ‘communal abuse’..