Madhya Pradesh: Man assaulted over ‘forced conversion’

“A bike stopped in front of my car and two riders asked me to come out. I had barely come out when the duo was joined by riders on two other bikes. They beat me up mercilessly with chains, rods and sticks,’’ he told The Indian Express.

He was then rushed to the same hospital and referred to a Bhopal hospital because his injuries were serious. The assault has left Paulose with multiple fractures and head injuries.

Church pastor Uttar Kumar Deep alleged that Paulose was attacked after being accused of converting people to Christianity. The pastor alleged that the attackers ran their bikes over him and also made him chant “yeshu’’ (Christ).

Paulose has also alleged that he was attacked after being accused of converting people to Christianity. He, however, said that neither he nor his father, who had been a pastor, had ever been attacked before or accused of conversion.

“We have been living in the area for decades and never faced any problem. Everyone knows me here because I get actively involved in all activities of church,” he said.

The church has approached the Sehore police with a request to arrest the attackers. An FIR under sections related to attempt to murder, criminal intimidation, wrongful restraint and grievous injuries was filed in the Kotwali Police Station. Five days after the incident, the police said they were clueless about the motive or the identity of the attackers.

“He (Paulose) told us he was attacked because of his religion but could not provide any clue leading to the attackers. He told us he works with an NGO that preaches Christianity,” Inspector Manoj Mishra said.