Of these, two incidents in the state capital Jaipur occurred in Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma’s own constituency, Sanganer, the groups said in a joint statement issued Tuesday evening.
File Photo: IANS
About a dozen civil society organisations have expressed concern over the rising incidents of attacks against Christians, noting that nine such incidents have been reported in September alone, since the Anti-Conversion Bill was tabled and passed in the Rajasthan Assembly on September 9.
Of these, two incidents in the state capital Jaipur occurred in Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma’s own constituency, Sanganer, the groups said in a joint statement issued Tuesday evening.
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“This situation reflects the officials’ disregard for peace and harmony in the city,” the organisations said, demanding the arrest of the culprits, who they alleged are linked to the Bajrang Dal.
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The civil society groups that issued the statement include the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), Jaipur Christian Fellowship, Rajasthan Samagra Sewa Sangh, Association for Protection of Civil Rights, Rajasthan Baudh Maha Sangh, National Federation of Indian Women, All India Democratic Women’s Association, Daman Pratirodh Andolan (Rajasthan), Buddhist Society of India, Jamaat-e-Islami (Rajasthan), Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind, and Dalit Muslim Ekta Manch, PUCL national president Kavita Srivastava said.
Narrating Tuesday’s incident, John Mathew and Sawai Singh of the Jaipur Christian Fellowship said that the Hindustan Bible Institute (HBI) in Pratap Nagar, which trains pastors and church leaders, faced protests by Bajrang Dal activists, who suspected the institute of engaging in conversions.
About 50 Bajrang Dal activists reached the institute at 3 pm, while an inspection was underway by one representative from the HBI headquarters in Chennai and another from Bagidora town in Banswara district.
The protesters alleged that the visitors had come to carry out conversions and began indulging in hooliganism.
Following a complaint at the Pratap Nagar police station, the police allegedly siding with Bajrang Dal activists, took the two visiting HBI representatives to the station on the pretext of an inquiry.
They also seized the telephone, laptops, and a pen drive belonging to the institute’s in-charge, along with all documents, including property papers. The police even examined the guests’ travel tickets, which showed their arrival in Jaipur at 3 am Tuesday, Mathew and Singh said.
Later in the day, a delegation of civil society organisations met senior police officials, including DCP Sanjiv Nain, ACP Vinod Kumar Sharma, and SHO Manoj of Pratap Nagar police station. The delegation, led by Sawai Singh, condemned the incidents and pointed out that this was the second such attack in the chief minister’s constituency in three days. The first incident occurred on Sunday, September 21, when Pastor Daniel was attacked while conducting mass at a house in Pratap Nagar. An FIR was lodged only after hours of protest, and no arrests have been made so far.
According to the statement, this was the ninth attack on Christians since the Anti-Conversion Bill was tabled and passed on September 9.
The incidents include 2 attacks in Dungarpur, 1 in Alwar, 2 in Jaipur, 2 incidents of police harassment of Believers in the Christian faith in Kotputli Behror District, 2 incidents in Anupgarh(Hanumangarh), including a break in a children’s hostel and beating up two supervisors, the statement has informed.
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