Fact-Finding Team Reports Alleged Intimidation of Christians Across West Bengal

An opposition fact-finding team has reported allegations of intimidation, attacks on churches and restrictions on religious practices affecting Christian communities in several districts of West Bengal, eastern India, following a mob attack that forced an Indigenous Christian Bible convention to end early.

The three-member team from the All India Trinamool Congress (AITC), led by Parliament Member (MP) Sagarika Ghose, visited Christian institutions, churches and educational establishments in Kolkata, North 24 Parganas and Paschim Medinipur districts on the instructions of party chief Mamata Banerjee.

The investigation followed an October 9 attack at St. Louis Parish Church in Jalarkhali, Nadia district, where a four-day Santali Bible convention was disrupted after a mob allegedly vandalized church property and assaulted local Christians. The Diocese subsequently advised organizers to end the gathering early on security grounds.

The Santali are an Indigenous people living mainly in eastern India, particularly West Bengal, Jharkhand, Odisha and Bihar. Santali-speaking Christians from different areas had gathered at the Jalarkhali Divine Center for the annual convention, which had registered more than 1,900 participants on its opening day.

During the fact-finding visits, Ghose said the delegation sought to hear directly from people who reported experiencing intimidation and to offer assistance to Christian communities she described as fearful and anxious.

In posts on X, the MP alleged that Christians in different parts of the state were facing pressure to abandon their faith, denial of burial rights and interference with property development and access to irrigation water for farming. She also alleged that churches had been vandalized and that loud music was played near prayer meetings to intimidate congregations.

At Auxilium Convent in Simultala, Barasat, in North 24 Parganas district, the delegation heard allegations that an aggressive mob had threatened religious sisters over construction work they said was being carried out legally on their property.

Ghose also cited the reported attack on the Santali Bible convention in Jalarkhali, in Nadia district, where organizers had been forced to terminate the gathering before its scheduled conclusion.

During a visit to Christ the King Church in Balichak, Paschim Medinipur district, the delegation heard allegations that the body of a Christian had been forcibly exhumed and cremated in Moninathpur village. Ghose further alleged that Christians in the area were being denied access to water supplies and burial grounds.

The team also visited Bamanpukur in North 24 Parganas district. According to Ghose, a self-styled Vishwa Hindu Parishad activist identified as Swami Shivananda had threatened a parish priest and pastors, giving them an ultimatum to persuade members of their congregations to return to Hinduism.

Ghose quoted Fr. Pradeep Dari, the priest concerned, as saying that Hindus and Christians had traditionally lived peacefully in the area but that residents of the Christian village were now fearful.

The MP also said the Archbishop Elias Frank of Kolkata had expressed deep alarm over reported attacks on Christians, linking the concerns to broader questions about democracy and humane values.

The fact-finding team's allegations have not been independently verified. Ghose did not specify whether police complaints had been filed in connection with all the incidents cited by the delegation. There was no immediate response from the West Bengal government or police to the claims at the time of reporting.

The delegation's findings raise wider questions about the safety of Christian worship, religious institutions and community rights in West Bengal. The reported incidents, including the disruption of the Santali Bible convention, require impartial investigation by the authorities.