By Nirmala Carvalho
A legislator from India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has sparked outrage after offering a cash reward for attacking Christian evangelists.
Gopichand Padalkar, the BJP representative for the Jat constituency in Sangli district, Maharashtra, announced during a public speech that he would reward anyone who assaults those allegedly visiting villages to carry out religious conversions, according to the Press Trust of India (PTI).
Padalkar made the remarks following the suicide of a 28-year-old woman in Sangli district. The woman, who was four months pregnant, reportedly took her life due to pressure from her in-laws to convert to Christianity and an alleged dowry demand.
In a speech delivered on 18 June, Padalkar said: “Whoever does the work of [religious] conversion, and if our people do ‘Sairat’”—a reference to honour killings, drawn from the Marathi film Sairat—“to that person, then I will personally give a reward of $13,000.”
The remarks provoked condemnation from Christian leaders and activists across Maharashtra, a state in western India that includes Mumbai and was formerly known as Bombay. Christians make up less than one per cent of the population, though there are significant communities in urban areas.
The BJP is also the party of India’s Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, and is widely considered to be the political wing of the RSS, a Hindu nationalist organisation. Critics claim that life has grown increasingly difficult for religious minorities—including Christians, Muslims, Sikhs and Buddhists—since Modi first took office in 2014.
Protests have been held in various towns and cities in Maharashtra calling for Padalkar to be prosecuted for inciting violence. On 30 June, Christians in Jalna district staged a demonstration condemning Padalkar’s alleged threats against priests, holding placards and demanding that a criminal case be filed.
This story was originally published in thecatholicherald.com. Read the full story here.