On February 19, a pastor's wife was beaten in Raipur, Chhattisgarh by a man responsible for an attack on her husband, Pastor Kanhaiya Lal Sharma, and five other pastors in December 2005. According to a February 23 report from Compass Direct, Kanti Sharma was at the community water tap with Jogi Sahu (19), an associate of the Hindu militant group Dharma Sena, when she saw him manhandling a female minor. She told him to stop abusing the girl. A few minutes later, Sahu and his brother sought the pastor's wife out at her home. They dragged her out of the house by her hair and beat her, giving her a bloody nose and a swollen eye.
When Pastor Sharma took his wife to the Urla police station, the police refused to file a complaint against her attackers, insisting that the parties solve their dispute on their own. The pastor's wife had to wait more than two hours for the police inspector to arrive before she was allowed to seek hospital treatment. Though the police stated that there was no religious motive for the beating, Christian leaders in Chhattisgarh claim that the incident was triggered by opposition to Pastor Sharma's hosting Sunday worship services in his home.
On February 20, three pastors were also beaten in Raipur in an attack led by Panat Ram, a local politician from the Hindu nationalist Bjaratiua Janata Party (BJP). According to a February 26 report from Compass Direct, Elisha Baker, Balbir Kher and Nan Sai of the Believer's Church were attacked at approximately 3:00 p.m. while attending a three-day Christian meeting in the house of a local believer. They all received minor injuries. Prior to the attack, Ram had filed a police complaint against the organizers of the February 18-20 meeting for allegedly converting Hindus but police investigation proved his allegations false.
Pray for the healing of all those who were injured in these attacks. Pray that church leaders in India will remain faithful to the task God has given them, knowing that they will receive the crown of life (I Peter 5:1-4). Pray that Indian Christians will rejoice in the opportunity to grow in Christlikeness through the ongoing opposition they face (James 1:2-4).
For more information on the persecution of Christians in India, click here. VOMC has recently released a video report on the persecution facing Christians in India. You can view excerpts at https://www.vomcanada.com/ or order a DVD copy of "Faith Under Fire: India" from our online catalogue.
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