ICC Note:

Christian leaders in India’s Jharkhand state claim that the murder of a Lutheran minister is part of a broader conspiracy against Christians led by radicals trying to turn India into a Hindu nation. On May 6, the body of Rev. Abraham Soreng was discovered with multiple injuries. Police have stated that the minister was likely murdered. Jharkhand has seen many attacks on Christians and leaders in that state are certian that this murder is part of a growing trend of religious intolerance led by radical Hindu nationalists. 

5/10/2016 India (Eurasia Review) – The murder of a Lutheran minister in India’s tribal-dominated Jharkhand state shows that Christians are now becoming a target for attacks, Christian leaders said.

The body of the Rev. Abraham Soreng of Goosner Evangelical Lutheran Church was found with multiple injuries May 6. His funeral was conducted on the next day in his Kadma village of Kunti district in Jharkhand.

Kunti is a Christian stronghold district. About 25 percent of its 532,000 people are Christians.

Investigating police officer Ranveer Singh, who examined the body, told ucanews.com that the murder appears to be the result of a conspiracy.

The state, where the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party is in power, has reported several crimes against Christians.

Christian leaders such as Subhash Kongari consider this as part of an ongoing attack against Christians in the state. Kongari, who is state vice president of Rashtriya Isai Mahasangh (national Christian forum), said the murder is the “outcome of a deep rooted conspiracy against Christians” in the state.

Kongari told ucanews.com that Jharkhand recently has been witnessing “organized crimes against Christians” orchestrated by Hindu organizations that are trying to make India a Hindu theocratic state.

“Any act of violence is condemnable, when it comes to a religious person, it is more condemnable,” said Auxiliary Bishop Theodore Mascarenhas of Ranchi, secretary-general of the Indian Catholic bishops’ conference.

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