Christianity crackdown: Wedding party attacked by mob 'with rods and sticks'

In a shocking turn of events, police then accused the Christians of “forcibly-converting” people and disturbing the community. Officers made a series of arrests, seizing women, a three-year-old child and the church pastor. The Hindu mob threatened to attack and kill everyone enjoying the ceremony. 

Speaking to Morning Star News, Pastor Pankaj recalled how hundreds of people walked into the room brandishing horrific weapons. 

He said: “I had just started to speak when a mob barged into the ceremony and began to spitefully speak to us. 

“They were about 250 people and every single one was carrying a rod or a wooden stick. It was evident that they were there to attack us.”

Those arrested were later released after Christian groups pushed authorities to grant them bail.

But it was later revealed they were forced to confess to trying to forcibly convert people to Christianity, despite being innocent. 

The pastor added: “One of the policeman asked the attackers to allow the police to take us to the police station, where [the officer said] we would be beaten up and straightened.”

There was another unbelievable twist after Attorney Harjinder Singh visited the Hindu mob leader to encourage him to drop the charges. 

The attorney was punched in the face by the doctor, with the legal representative, not the attacker, later charged with house trespassing and intentional insults. 

READ MORE: CHRISTIANITY CRACKDOWN: Church BURNED TO GROUND by extremists

Speaking to Open Doors, one Indian church leader said: “Hindu nationalists are trying to turn India into a ‘Hindustan’, with no place for Christians, Muslims and other non-Hindus. 

“If you are Indian, you are Hindu. If you are not Hindu, you are not Indian, would be what Hindu nationalists say.” 

Of the country’s 1 billion people, there are a total of 65million Christians living in the country. 

India saw 325 incidents of Christians being targeted in 2018, slightly down on 2017 but almost double annual numbers reported between 2012 and 2015. 

The latest abuse comes just months after former Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt declared the persecution of christians had reached near genocide levels.

His comments followed a report which estimated one in three people suffer religious persecution worldwide. 

But the figures showed Christians suffered the most, warning the faith could be wiped out in areas of the Middle East. 

The former Tory leadership candidate claimed Christian populations in the Middle East used to be around 20 percent, but later said this had dramatically fallen to just five percent in recent years. 

Mr Hunt added: “What we have forgotten in that atmosphere of political correctness is actually the Christians that are being persecuted are some of the poorest people on the planet.” 

source: express.co.uk