Dharmendra Dohar, a man from Satna, Madhya Pradesh, said he was paid Rs 5,000 for getting converted.
Highlights
- The man had alleged he was paid Rs 5000 for getting converted
- Following his complaint, 30 Christians and 2 priests were detained
- A case has been filed against a priest and 5 others
Dharmendra Dohar, the man who alleged that he had been illegally converted by a group of Christians, has told reporters that he has been a member of the right wing group, the Bajrang Dal, for a year. The man -- who complained to the police that he was illegally converted and paid Rs. 5,000 for it - was, however, unwilling to confirm that claim before television cameras.
Asked if he has really changed his religion, Dharmendra Dohar told reporters, "I can't speak on this... If I do, I will get embroiled in the issue... it will be said that I'm changing my statement". The "group", he said, doesn't want "such people (Christians) to come in here".
Asked who he was afraid of, the Bajrang Dal or the police, he said, "I'm concerned about my family. It is because of me they got in trouble... we were told not to allow these people (Christians) to come into our homes and mingle with us".
Dharmendra Dohar's complaint had brought to the police to a village in Satna on Thursday, where a pre-Christmas programme had been organized by the local seminarians. Five men, one of them a priest, had been arrested.
The carolers -- around 30 of them -- were picked up and questioned by the police.
"The Fathers and Brothers had gone for the programme, when a group of Bajrang Dal people had turned up and accused us of carrying out conversions and then the police came... After being taken to the police station, they were beaten up by another group of Bajrang Dal members," said Fr Robin.
When other priests went to meet the Churchmen, they were beaten up as well, he said. Many of the men sustained injuries and started bleeding. "They even set fire to one of our cars," he said.
The Bajrang Dal's accusations of conversions, he said, were entirely false.
Both police and the Bajranj Dal have denied allegations of assault. "They are converting people for long... We reached there with the police (but) we have not raised our hands," said Yatindra Pathak, the group's district convenor.
No case has been filed on the assault.
The police detained 30 Christians and two priests and six of them, including a priest, George M, were arrested. They were released on bail later and a case was filed against them.
Rajesh Hingankar, a senior police officer, said, "
18-year-old Vikas Shukla was arrested on Saturday for allegedly torching the car".