LUCKNOW: The Gajraula incident in which two nuns of the St, Mary’s Convent were raped is not an isolated case of Christians being targets of crimes, according to Father Oswald Luis, Vicar General and deputy to the Bishop of the Lucknow Diocese who is traveling abroad, Christian missionaries have been in the forefront in doing voluntary work in hospitals and schools in the poorest Hindu areas of India.
There have been two dozen other recent incidents, according to Fr. Luis, in which nuns, priests and Christian teachers have been the victims of rape, murder and assault. Three persons were murdered, eight looted and nine attempts were made to grab property belonging to churches or convents. ‘There have been innumerable cases of damage of property and threats.
Fr. Luis said a dozen men attacked a convent at Baghpat last year, and raped three teachers and looted Rs 6,500. Fr. Luis who is also secretary of Catholic educational institutions in UP said he had taken up the matter with the Union Home Ministry but no action had been taken to ensure safety of the nuns and teachers or the guilty punished.
Mr. McCarthy principal of the Jamuna Christian College Allahabad was shot dead in January this year. Similarly, for ‘S.E. Datus was brutally murdered two years ago. Mrs. J Carter was found dead in her home in Lawrence Terrace, Lucknow in mysterious circumstances earlier this year. Fr. Henry D. Souza was kidnaped and held to ransom. The Bishop refused to pay saying the money he had was for the poor and needy and not for dacoits. The priest was freed after a week of inhuman treatment.
Dacoits wanted to take away a maid servant of Ranipur mission when they raided it in February but had to relent when the priests resisted the attempt saying the dacoits would have to kill them first,
Sisters of the Maria Bhavan Convent were raped and looted in Muradnagar in 1988. Last year in Ghaziabad Carmelite nuns were beaten and looted in broad daylight.
Nuns of the Convent of Our Lady of Grace were assaulted and looted in Saldhand. Franciscan brothers were beaten up in Mathura.
A Janata Dal MLA, Bhopal Singh, with the help of supporters forcibly occupied Christian property in Meerut. Janata Dal workers forcibly tried to build a temple on the property of St. John’s College in Agra. Some people forcibly occupied 40 acres meant for a hospital the foundation stone of which was laid by the chief minister Mulayan Singh Yaday himself in his home district Etawah.
Article extracted from this publication >> August 17, 1990