Hundreds of people have been injured at a gathering of Christians preparing to celebrate Christmas. There are even some unconfirmed reports of deaths.
The area is isolated, perhaps not allow witnesses and the police refuse to respond to calls. The violence took place in the village of Sindhwaram, in Chhattisgarh: from 2.00 AM night until the morning, a crowd of drunk and armed people attacked a tent where groups of Christians who had been celebrating the beginning of the Advent season in preparation for Christmas had gone to sleep the previous day. The gathering was also attended by faithful from other villages around. The village members have sealed off the area and are not allowing anyone to enter or take photos or videos.
Activist Arun Pannalal, president of the Chhattisgarh Christian Forum, managed to get in touch with the Gajral police station only morning at 6 am. The police denied all violence. The victims are being housed in the police station. Members of the Chhattisgarh Christian Forum say that as soon as they heard of the attack, they immediately phoned the police, but the phone lines were cut off from 2am until this morning.
For the past two years Arun Pannalal has been appealing to the Chief Minister of the State and the Minister of the Interior, “but my requests – he tells AsiaNews – have not been taken seriously. The entire Bastar region suffers from premeditated attacks targeting Christains. They are attacks related to a planned conspiracy. The government should act immediately ordering an in-depth investigation into this violence.”
–ASIANNEWS