Indian government’s witch-hunt against Mother Teresa nuns falls apart. The charge of religious conversion was without substance and will not be pursued, prosecution tells court in Gujarat
The much-publicized case of religious conversion against Missionaries of Charity (MC) nuns in India’s western state of Gujarat has come a cropper with the prosecution admitting there was no serious basis to proceed against them. The prosecution gave a written undertaking to a court in Vadorara city that it would not pursue the case any further, although the first information report written by police to set the investigation in motion has yet to be quashed. The prosecution’s undertaking meant an end to the adverse publicity and unnecessary harassment of the nuns from the Kolkata-based organization founded by Mother Teresa which ran a shelter home for the destitute in Vadodara. In a related development, the court also dropped the hearing of an anticipatory bail application filed by two MC nuns, who did not want to be identified, ending their nearly three-month ordeal to avoid likely arrest for a crime they never committed. “Indeed it is happy news and vindication of our stand from the very beginning,” said Father Cedric Prakash, a Jesuit priest and rights activist based in Gujarat. He confirmed that the local court decided to drop the legal proceedings on March 3 after the government prosecutor admitted in writing that there was no serious
Indian PM’s party keen to retain power in Christian stronghold
Pro-Hindu BJP seeks to woo voters in cash-strapped Manipur state 03/04/2022: State elections in Christian stronghold Manipur kicked off the polling season with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) vowing to retain power. In the first phase that began on Feb. 28, elections were held for 40 seats, while polling for 20 constituencies in the hilly northeastern region will be held on March 5. Initially, the first phase of voting was slated for Sunday, Feb. 27, but following protests from Christian leaders it was rescheduled to Feb. 28. According to the last official census, Christians make up 41.29 percent of Manipur's population and Hindus marginally more at 41.39 percent. Muslims represent 8.4 percent. However, Christians have a decisive say in 20 of the 60 seats in the hill state. In the remaining 40, native Meitei Hindus hold sway. The BJP bagged a mere 21 seats in the 2017 elections. The Hindu party then came to power by forming an alliance with two smaller parties — the National People's Party and the Naga People's Front. The latter is essentially based out of neighboring Nagaland and draws its strength from the Christian Naga population. Elections in Manipur and other northeastern states are guided by one
Christian pastor alleges assault by Delhi mob claiming he was involved in religious conversions
A Christian pastor has alleged he was assaulted on February 25 by a mob in Delhi that accused him of being on a conversion mission. Four days after a complaint containing these allegations was filed at the Maidan Garhi police station in South Delhi, an FIR was registered on 3 March. The pastor, 35-year-old Kelom Kalyan Tet, said that the incident occurred between 10.50 am and 12.30 pm. According to his complaint, he had gone to the Bhati Mines area to meet a friend. When he was leaving, some local residents accosted him and forced him to chant “Jai Sri Ram.” “They asked me why I had come here,” Tet told Scroll.in. “I said I had come to meet Kaalu bhai [his friend] which is when another person, who they had called on the phone, reached the area.” The confrontation then became violent. “They spoke to each other and accused me of religious conversion,” he said. “They started beating me up and took my phone, my bag which had my Bible, the papers of my bike and other important papers. They were taking photos and videos of the entire thing.” Tied up and beaten Tet said that some women objected to him being beaten and asked the men
