A church was allegedly vandalised on Tuesday by some unknown miscreants in Karnataka’s Mysuru. The incident, reported at the St. Mary’s Church on Gonikoppa road at Periyapatna, came just two days after the festival of Christmas. Several items, including a statue of a Baby Jesus, were also damaged in the incident, reported news agency ANI.
Mysuru Superintendent of Police (SP) Seema Latkar said that a team has been formed to nab the culprits, and an investigation is underway.
“We have formed a team to nab the culprits, we are also looking for available CCTV footage with nearby cameras, it looks like theft as a money box and other such things have been taken away. Further probe underway,” Latkar said.
Periyapatna police said that the incident took place at around 7 PM on Tuesday, and have filed a case under Indian Penal Code (IPC) Section 295 A (deliberate act intended to outrage religious feelings) and Section 380 (theft), according to Times of India.
Additional Superintendent of Police BN Nandini, who visited the spot after the incident, said that the miscreants had also taken away the offering box, and the altar was also ransacked. The official added that prima facie it appeared that it was a case of theft, but the case is being investigated from all angles.
Over the past few years, Christian missionaries and several churches have come under fire from certain religious and political outfits over allegations of forced conversion.
Karnataka passes anti-conversion bill
In September, Karnataka Legislative Council had passed the contentious anti-conversion Bill which was tabled by the state’s BJP government, The Indian Express reported.
According to the proposed law, complaints of conversions can be filed by family members, relatives or colleagues of a person who is getting converted.
A jail term of three year to five years, and a fine of Rs 25000, has been proposed for people violating the law in the case of people from general categories and a jail term of three to 10 years, and a fine of Rs 50,000 for people converting minors, women and persons from the SC and ST communities.
Karnataka third with states with highest number of attacks on Christians
In December, a fact-finding report stated that Karnataka is ranked third among States with the highest number of attacks on members of the Christian community and their places of worship, The Hindu reported. The BJP-ruled state also recorded the highest incidents among states in South India.
The report was a joint initiative of the United Christian Forum, Association for Protection of Civil Rights, and United Against Hate.