Koraput (Odisha), Jan 28 (PTI) Tension prevailed at a village in Odisha’s Nabarangpur district after some members of the Christian community alleged that they were prevented from holding prayer sessions at a house being used as a church, a senior official said on Wednesday.
The incident took place at Kapena village within Umerkote police limits on Monday.
The alleged victims claimed that around 9 am of January 26, a group of villagers disrupted a prayer service and warned the nearly 30 Christian families to renounce their faith.
Kapena is Hindu-dominated village where a few families have been converted into Christianity.
“One family has members from both Hindu and Christian communities. While the father is a Hindu, his son is a Christian,” Nabarangpur district collector Maheswar Swain said, adding that what happened on Monday was not a communal flare up, rather a dispute between members of families.
The Christian families, however, claimed that the opposing group used loudspeakers to issue threats, saying the prayer hall would be demolished and the families expelled from the village if they continued their religious practices.
“When the devotees questioned why they should stop praying, the villagers locked the prayer hall from outside and forced everyone to leave,” alleged local resident Tuna Santa.
He further alleged that two youths from the community – Jaladhar Santa (17) and Mohan Santa (20) – were assaulted by the mob.
Community members said they submitted a complaint at Umerkote police station.
However, police said they had not received any formal written complaint, though they acknowledged that tension had prevailed between two groups in the village and that security personnel had been deployed.
“We are yet to receive any complaint on the issue (alleged assault), but after learning about the incident, adequate police have been deployed to contain the situation,” said Ramakanta Sai, IIC of Umerkote police station.
Speaking to PTI, Swain said, “A house was built on an encroached government land. There was no objection when the family was staying. But, the dispute originated when a section of villagers raised objection to use of the house as a church.” “There was no communal tension at the village. However, a small dispute was raised in the village over the use of the house as a prayer hall by members of one community and it was resolved immediately,” he said.
A peace committee comprising members from both communities held a meeting under the supervision of Nabarangpur sub-collector Prakash Kumar Mishra to restore normalcy, the collector said.
“According to the peace committee’s decision, 15 days’ time has been given to relocate the prayer hall with a request to both groups to resolve the issue and live in harmony as they did earlier,” the collector said. PTI COR BBM AAM AAM MNB
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