Christian Tribals Assaulted, Locked Inside Church Over Prayers in Odisha's Nabarangpur
New Delhi: Members of the Christian tribal community were allegedly harassed, assaulted and obstructed from holding prayers after a group of miscreants entered their church in Kapena village in Nabarangpur district of Odisha, reported The Times of India.
The mob allegedly also used loudspeakers to issue threats, saying the church would be demolished and the 30 tribal Christian families would be expelled from the village if they continued their religious practices.
The incident happened on Sunday, January 25. "When the devotees questioned why they should stop praying, the accused locked the church from outside and forced everyone to leave," a local resident, Tuna Santa, told the daily.
According to UCA News, the mob was part of Hindu nationalist groups who warned them to return to the Hindu faith.
The next day, locals alleged, two youths from the community – Jaladhar Santa (17) and Mohan Santa (20) – were assaulted by the same mob.
A complaint was submitted at the Umerkote police station. However, the police did not pay much heed, saying that tension had prevailed between two groups in the village and that security personnel had already been deployed.
"We are yet to receive any complaint on the issue, but after learning about the incident, adequate police have been deployed to contain the situation," Ramakanta Sai, IIC of Umerkote police station, was quoted as saying by TOI.
Meanwhile, a peace committee was formed reportedly comprising members from both the groups and a meeting was held in the village under the supervision of the sub-collector (Nabarangpur) Prakash Kumar Mishra.
According to Nabarangpur collector Maheswar Swain, the mob was objecting to a house that had allegedly been constructed on “encroached land”, and a part of it was being used as a prayer hall.
"As per the peace committee's decision, 15 days' time has been given to relocate the prayer hall and to both groups to resolve the issue and live in harmony as they did earlier," the collector told TOI.
Meanwhile, Pallav Lima, general secretary of Rashtriya Christian Morcha, Odisha wing, said these incidents were deliberately provocative and a calculated attempt at polarisation. "In Nabarangpur's case, tribals are being used against tribals," he said, as quoted by the daily.
The incident comes weeks after a pastor was allegedly assaulted by a Hindutva mob for conducting prayers in Parjang village of Dhenkanal district.
On January 4, pastor Bipin Naik was holding a prayer meeting when the mob forcefully stopped it, tied up his hands and beat him with sticks. He was then garlanded with slippers, and force-fed cow dung. Nine people were detained in the matter on January 21, The Hindu reported.
This article went live on January twenty-eighth, two thousand twenty six, at one minutes past seven in the evening.The Wire is now on WhatsApp. Follow our channel for sharp analysis and opinions on the latest developments.
