By Muslim Mirror Staff
New Delhi: In the wake of increased attacks on Christians and members of the clergy, Cardinal Baselios Cleemis, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India today strongly criticized the BJP-led central government saying the Indian Christians lost confidence in the present government. He said now the onus on the government to restore confidence in the community.
In view of attacks on Christians in, Mathura and Aligarh (UP), Satna (MP) and other places, the top Christian religious leader Cleemis said that Indian Christians’ trust in the government has become shaky and the onus is on the government administration to restore trust.
Talking to the media here, the cardinal said he visited Satna where radical Hindu activists linked to the ruling party in Madhya Pradesh attacked two Catholic priests and 30 seminarians accusing them of attempting a religious conversion.
The Christians, who were in a village singing Christmas carols, were attacked and their car torched just outside a police station but police did not take any action, he added.
Police in Madhya Pradesh state kept them in custody for a night. The administration acted under pressure from Hindu groups, Cardinal Cleemis claimed.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s BJP runs the government in 18 of 29 Indian states, including Madhya Pradesh, where Christian leaders told that the administration is unwilling to act against Hindu fanatic groups, he said.
“The anxiety of the religious minorities is increasing because of the lack of confidence in the administration. So the onus is on the government to bring back the confidence of religious minorities,” Cardinal Cleemis said.
Frequently, Christians are attacked on the allegation that they violate laws that regulate religious conversion. These laws also make it a criminal offense to attempt to convert anyone using fraud, inducement or allurement.
Often Christian work in the fields of education and healthcare of villagers can be interpreted as inducement or allurement.
Cardinal Cleemis also met Indian Home Minister Rajnath Singh “to tell him about the pain and shock” of the Christian community at the latest incident in Madhya Pradesh.
Christian leaders underlined that the attacks on Christians have increased since BJP came to power in India in 2014. According to them, in 2017 alone, there were some 600 cases recorded.