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India’s largest lay Catholic organization condemned Monday an incident in the state of West Bengal in which a mob reportedly threatened violence against religious sisters.
The All India Catholic Union said that on July 12 a group of 60 people entered a house of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians in Barasat, West Bengal, and demanded that they immediately demolish a memorial chapel and cemetery or face violence.
The AICU alleged that the individuals involved in the incident were linked to the Hindu Jagran Manch (Forum for Hindu Awakening), a Hindu nationalist group affiliated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, an influential umbrella body.
The Hindu Jagran Manch does not appear to have commented on its alleged role in the event. Hindu nationalist groups often frame actions against Christian groups as arising from concerns about illegal conversions, land disputes, or local conflicts, rather than as religious persecution.
The Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, also known as the Salesian Sisters, reportedly obtained permission to build the memorial chapel and cemetery, intended for the burial of its members, under the previous state administration run by the Trinamool Congress party.
But in April’s state election, the
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