Prayer Service Attacked in Karnataka, India
By James Varghese
Special to ASSIST News Service
KARNATAKA, INDIA (ANS) — Hindu radicals attacked a Christian prayer service meeting.
The incident occurred in Kodipura village, Karnataka on Aug 8.
The website www.persecution.in reported that Pastor M. Mahesh of Agape Church was conducting a prayer service at the house of a believer named Lokesh. Suddenly between 10-15 Hindu radicals led by people named Ganesh and Madesh barged into the house, abused the pastor, and accused him of forcible conversions.
The site also reported that the radicals reportedly harassed the prayer service attendees with foul language, as the believers pleaded with the extremists to allow them to continue praying.
The story said the extremists telephoned the local police station, and told the inspector to come immediately and arrest the pastor and the believers as they were carrying out forced conversions.
According to the story, the radicals then called other Hindus, who came quickly and joined the first group of radicals in shouting anti-Christian slogans and harassing believers.
The story reported that even when law enforcement officers arrived at Lokesh’s house, the Hindu radicals continued harassing and intimidating the Christian believers.
Mahesh and his wife Chitra have been ministering in Kodipura since 2003.
The story on www.persecution.in reported that Pastor Thomas, Director of Agape Ministries, asked people to pray for the safety of the congregation and for future uninterrupted services.