{"id":1078,"date":"2025-06-06T05:20:40","date_gmt":"2025-06-06T05:20:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ambedkarsociety.org\/assa\/?p=1078"},"modified":"2025-07-04T05:47:14","modified_gmt":"2025-07-04T05:47:14","slug":"india-anti-christian-incidents-in-india-state-of-odisha-trouble-church-leaders","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ambedkarsociety.org\/assa\/india-anti-christian-incidents-in-india-state-of-odisha-trouble-church-leaders\/","title":{"rendered":"INDIA: Anti-Christian incidents in India state of Odisha trouble Church leaders"},"content":{"rendered":"
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In India, two anti-Christian incidents in the state of Odisha have disturbed the peace-loving Christian community, which has already been traumatized by harassment by right-wing extremists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Sunday, Sister Rachana Nayak was travelling with four women candidates and two male youths from Odisha when she was intercepted by Bajrang Dal activists on a train.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Christians were asked to disembark at Khurda, near Bhubaneswar, amid allegations of \u201cconversion activities.\u201d  The suspected Bajrang Dal activists forced them off the train and they were detained for 18 hours at a police station in Odisha on fabricated charges of trafficking in women and illegal conversions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nayak was released after she proved that her six companions were all Christians by birth and were travelling for enrolment in training courses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey had boarded the Rajya Rani Express from Berhampur on Saturday evening. One of the young men happened to be the nun\u2019s younger brother,\u201d Sister Sujata Jena, an advocate on the team of Women Lawyers who rescued them, told Crux<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey were headed for Jharsuguda, from where they planned to travel to Chhattisgarh where the girls would have received training in various skills and in spoken English,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jena said the four young women had been selected through a rigorous process of career counselling, and all of them were Catholics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSome people began heckling them on the train and accused the nun of involvement in religious conversions,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs soon as the train reached Khurda Junction around 11 pm on Saturday, around 30 people gathered and began abusing the nun and the four girls. They forced the entire group off the train,\u201d Jena said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cApart from religious conversions, they accused the nun of trafficking in women. The Railway Protection Force intervened and took all of them to the police station,\u201d she continued.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey pleaded they were all Christians, and that the nun had nothing to do with religious conversions, but no one listened to them,\u201d Jena added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She said the women\u2019s lawyer got to know about the matter on Sunday morning and rushed to Khurda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDuring the investigation, it came out that all those detained were aged above 18 except for one girl, who was 17. All of them are literate,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAll of them have now been released with full security and without any charges. The police treated them with dignity,\u201d she clarified.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jena said the women\u2019s parents arrived at the police station and took them back to their villages, unwilling after the ordeal to let them go on to Chhattisgarh. The two young men also left for home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nayak was escorted to Bhubaneswar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Catholic Church sources in Delhi said that apart from written parental consent and baptism certificates, members travelling with girls had been advised to carry \u201ca letter of admission to a senior secondary school to prove they are travelling for higher education.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The earlier incident involved a 90-year-old priest, Father Leenus Puthanveetil, and a 45-year-old unnamed priest who were brutally assaulted at a boys\u2019 hostel in Charwatiya in Odisha on May 23. The attackers broke into the priests\u2019 residence, tied them up, brutally beat them for hours, and robbed them. They also threatened to return.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Puthanveetil, who is under treatment at a hospital, said the attackers put a knife against his neck before slapping him and tying him up. His fellow priest was brutally beaten by the attackers in front of him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bishop Niranjan Singh asked Crux<\/em> if robbery is the motive, \u201cwhy are our clergy being assaulted?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI strongly condemn this\u2026 The law must take its course,\u201d he said, affirmed he had filed a police report about the incident.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTwo incidents in Odisha are causing much anguish among the people, this recent news of the young candidates being interrogated by right-wing activists \u2013 on the train and made to de-board \u2013 is disturbing and alarming,\u201d the bishop said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis should not happen \u2013 we\u2019re law-abiding citizens. The constitution gives us the freedom to move anywhere.  This has pained us,\u201d he told Crux<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Source: Crux Now<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In India, two anti-Christian incidents in the state of Odisha have disturbed the peace-loving Christian community, which has already been traumatized by harassment by right-wing extremists. 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