Catholic priests allegedly beaten up outside police station in Madhya Pradesh

Mid-day

Suspected Bajrang Dal activists were alleged to have beaten up some Christians, including 10 priests, and torched their car outside a police station in Satna district of Madhya Pradesh on Thursday night over alleged conversion of Hindus to Christianity

Bhopal: Suspected Bajrang Dal activists were alleged to have beaten up some Christians, including 10 priests, and torched their car outside a police station in Satna district of Madhya Pradesh on Thursday night over alleged conversion of Hindus to Christianity.

Sub-inspector Mohinee Sharma of Civil Lines police station said a case has been registered against unidentified people for burning the vehicle, but denied claim about members of the Catholic community having been assaulted during the incident. Nobody has been arrested yet, she added. The group comprised 10 Catholic priests and 32 others undergoing training for priesthood.

 

Father M. Rony, social work director of Satna diocese, said that some young men stormed the venue of a pre-Christmas function at Bhoomkar village, on Thursday night and created a ruckus, alleging that religious conversion was going on there. “After police got information, they took 32 Catholic brothers (trainee priests) and two priests to the Civil Lines police station, where they were beaten up by Bajrang Dal activists on the station campus,” Fr Rony said. He claimed four more priests were assaulted too.