Hindu mob beat pastor unconscious, burn Bibles; churchgoers live in fear

THE CHRISTIAN POST–

NEW DELHI — Hindu extremists in central India ransacked a church’s worship building, burned Bibles and assaulted every member, causing one to lose consciousness, sources said.

In Chhattisgarh state’s Dhamtari District, the Hindu nationalists attacked during the independent Penial Prayer Fellowship’s worship service in Borsi village, said Pastor Wakish Sahu, who leads the church along with his 57-year-old father, Mannohan Sahu.

“They forcibly entered the church, disrupted the worship service and were carrying wooden rods and shouting slogans like ‘Jai Shri Ram’ [Hail lord Rama],” Pastor Wakish Sahu told Morning Star News.

Threatening the Christians, the attackers told them to stop gathering for worship, he said. They broke all the chairs, fans and musical instruments, then collected all of the Christian literature along with the Bibles and burned them.

Taking hold of Pastor Mannohan Sahu, they beat him with wooden rods, slapped his face repeatedly, struck his head with wooden sticks and kicked him, Pastor Wakish Sahu said.

“My father was being beaten up, and during this time, blows landed near his ear, and he lost his consciousness,” he said. “The assaulters, probably scared that he was dead or going to die from the beating, called for a glass of water and forced it in his mouth.”

Pastor Mannohan Sahu sustained injuries over all his body, especially on his head, ear, chest, hands and back. Continue reading…