Christian leaders for the release of Kashmiri pastor

(November 24, 2011) In India’s Northern Kashmir State, Reverend Channa Mani Khanna has been imprisoned for having baptised seven Muslims. Sajan K George, President of the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC), commenting on the arrest of the Anglican pastor of All Saints Church in Kashmir said that Rev Khanna and seven Muslim converts were exercising their constitutional rights to religious freedom and freedom of choice and they have done nothing illegal. The Pastor was accused by the Grand Mufti of the region of having forced the conversion of young Muslims in exchange for money. For the Anglican bishop P.K. Samantha Roy, of the Diocese of Amritsar, "the way the police have arrested the pastor is humiliating. Rev. Khanna has never acted in secret. We ask the government of Kashmir for justice. The Anglican Church will seek a legal redress for our innocent pastor," he added. A few days before his arrest, on 19 November, the Grand Mufti Bashir-ud-Din had called the Rev. Khanna before a sharia court, to answer charges of forced conversion. In addition to Rev. Khanna, the police also arrested the seven Muslim that he baptized, beating them to obtain a confession against the pastor. "The request to appear before a Shariah court - said Sajan George - is alarming. We must stop the Talibanisation of the only Indian state with a Muslim majority. The Church of North India is demanding the release the pastor and has met the government authorities already. The minister claimed the issue was “very sensitive in nature,” but said he will look into the matter.