Christians Attacked in Delhi During Sunday Prayer: “They Tried To Rip Our Clothes, Tore Bible”

Nearly 300 people gathered outside the GTB Enclave police station and fiercely sang “Jai Shree Ram.” They were apparently members of the RSS, VHP, and Bajrang Dal. They were furious with the Christian community members who had gone there to report an alleged attack on them. People from the Christian community have claimed that Bajrang Dal members have physically attacked them and assaulted them.

On August 20th, a mob of 35–40 people using clubs, rods, and swords carried out a savage assault on members of the Christian community. The incident happened at 10:45 AM as the victims were praying within Siyyon Prathan Bhawan’s grounds in the Tahirpur neighborhood. The attackers entered the prayer hall while playing “Hindu rashtra banayenge, Jai Shree Ram” over loud speakers.

Pastor Satpal Bhati, who was present at the event, told Outlook that “we pray every Sunday, and by us, I mean people from our community gather to pray together, and as usual, we did the same this Sunday as well.”

When recounting the incident, Bhati recalled that immediately after the prayer, they heard loud music coming from outside the gate and chose to shut the door to prevent any disturbance. “A crowd of people, including young children, barged in chanting Jai Shree Ram as one of my people went to close the gate.”

When Bhati and others saw that the crowd was holding swords, spears, and rods, they were in awe. They were unable to comprehend what they were witnessing for a good several minutes before the crowd began vandalizing the whole area. The crowd tore up the Bible, the Christian sacred book, in addition to the Casio, drums, and other musical instruments using rods and swords.

“With the rod, one of the ladies who went to save the Bible from harm was beaten. She has serious injuries,” Bhati stated.

The considerable destruction and vandalism to the property within the bhawan are seen in the videos and photographs acquired by Outlook. Few victims of attack were willing to tolerate the way the crowd singled them out and beat them with rods.

One of the victims sobbed as she cradled her damaged right hand and added, “They tried opening our clothes in addition to beating us.”

The crowd said that as this is a Hindu nation, nothing of the such would be tolerated in the country after completely vandalizing the location.

“I’m still unclear as to what they were discussing. Is it improper to pray in alone and peace? inquired of Bhati.

“Yeah pe ye sab nahi chalega, Ye Hindu Rashtra hai. Ab courts ne bhi kaha hai ye sab nahi chalega, which means that because this is a Hindu country, such behavior is no longer acceptable. Such actions have even been rejected by the courts.

Members of the community who were present in the prayer hall agreed with Bhati’s account and remembered how not only them but also their faith had been insulted.

Three males and three women, respectively, have reported being verbally and physically attacked by the crowd.

To put pressure on the police to not file a FIR on the situation, a sizable group of people assembled just outside the police station. However, the GTB enclave police station has received a FIR.

Following the whole event, tribal activist Minakshi Singh questioned, “Are they going to make this another Manipur?”

The victims have been contacted by Minakshi, who has also taken note of the whole episode. She laments the direction our country is going, saying that no woman, child, or minority group is safe any more.

The crowd who assaulted the prayer hall believed that the locals were converting and objected to their worshiping in a mostly Hindu neighborhood.

Violence against Christians occurred in 23 states in 2023 alone, according to a study by the United Christian Forum. With 155 instances, UP leads the 23 states, followed by Chhattisgarh with 84 incidences.

According to their research, there were 147 church assaults in 2014, and the number has steadily increased in almost every year thereafter. 599 attacks against Christians were reported in the previous year, a startling number. According to The Siasat Daily, 400 attacks have been reported in the first 190 days of 2023.

Bhati concluded with a remark, “Hum iss desh ke hai hi nahi inke accordingly.”

The SHO of the GTB Enclave police station was contacted by Outlook, however he was unable to comment on the situation.