Church body condemns Bhagwat’s Bible reference to mob lynching

The National Council of Churches in India has issued a statement condemning the reference to the Bible by Rashtriya Swayam Sevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat, in order to justify the term “mob lynching.” In a statement on October 10, 2019, the NCCI said Bhagwat had misquoted the Bible. The NCCI stated: “We are shocked that such statements which have the potential to divide communities on religious lines are made in public fora.” The NCCI statement said this misrepresentation had “created suspicion among the people” and “humiliated the Christian minority”. It added, “We appeal all people not to be carried away by such misrepresentation or misinterpretation which are often done with political intentions.” At the annual Dussehra celebration at the RSS headquarters in Nagpur on Tuesday, October 8, 2019, Bhagwat had said that the concept of lynching was “alien to Bharat” and was being used to defame the “country and the entire Hindu society.”