India's bishops appeal to prime minister: save secular society

January 22, 2015

India’s Catholic bishops have made an urgent plea to Prime Minister Narendara Modi to uphold the secular character of the country.

The bishops, led by Cardinal Baselios Cleemis Catholicos, president of India’s episcopal conference, called upon the nation’s political leader “to urgently intervene and take appropriate action to stop incidents that pose big threat to the unity of this secular nation.”

The bishops’ appeal to Modi came at the same time that the Catholic Secular Forum released a report detailing attacks on Christian in India. The report said that five Christians had been killed, and 7,000 subjected to some form of violence, during the past calendar year.

This month, Christians have been shaken by reports that militant Hindu groups have arranged “reconversion” ceremonies, pressing hundreds of Christians to renounce their faith and return to their Hindu roots.

 

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Further information:

• Bishops ask Modi to urgently intervene to save secular India (UCANews)
• Persecution report highlights attacks on India's Christians (UCANews)