(April 01, 2011) A Catholic priest was attacked and seriously injured by three youths
early Thursday morning in central India’s Madhya Pradesh state. Father Sebastian
Kaiparambil of Khandwa diocese who runs St. Mary’s Higher Secondary School in Badwah,
said the assailants broke into his bedroom and demanded several school documents.
When the priest asked them to come in the morning, they began attacking him furiously.
They fled with two mobile phones and 70,000 rupees in cash, he said. The priest is
being treated for head injuries and multiple fractures at a private hospital in Indore.
Doctors say the priest’s condition is not life threatening. Bishop Sebastian Durairaj
condemned the attack saying Father Kaiparambil is a very active missionary with excellent
relations among the people. Archbishop Leo Cornelio of Bhopal, who chairs the council
of bishops in Madhya Pradesh, has sent a message to the state chief minister expressing
his alarm about the incident. Khandwa Diocese public relations officer Father Philip
Kaduthanam said police had been informed and were investigating. The incident might
be linked to a teacher who lost his job the day before at the school. Acts of violence
against Christians in Madhya Pradesh have been numerous since 2003, when the pro-Hindu
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power. Christians are less than 1% of the state
population of 55 million, 91% of whom are Hindu.