Growing intolerance and attacks on Christians in other parts of the country is a cause of concern for Church leaders here in Garo Hills.

“Church leaders here are apprehensive of the growing intolerance against Christians even as the current atmosphere in Garo Hills is peaceful and normal. People of different communities in Garo Hills have respected each other all these years,” Fr Theodore T.Sangma, Parish priest at the Sacred Heart Shrine in Lower Wadanang here told The Shillong Times.

Fr Theodore, who spared time for this correspondent in the middle of Soba, an annual conference of Catholics, also termed the trend of religious intolerance as “dangerous,” stating the fact that it has almost compelled people from the Christian community to be “subdued” and “affiliate with political parties.”

“It is unfortunate that people have been compelled to be lenient towards their religious faith and instead align themselves with political parties. This is a fallout of the growing levels of intole-rance against Christians in the country,” the parish priest said.