Tensions over conversion are escalating in a village in Chhattisgarh’s Narayanpur, where the social boycott of 26 families has led to a police deployment, with the families claiming they have received a 30-day ultimatum to “return to the tribal culture”.
According to locals, communal tensions have been simmering in Bharanda village since last December, when objections to Christian prayers allegedly led to a mob assault on a local resident.
According to locals, the tensions followed a dispute over burial rights in Badetevda village in neighbouring Kanker district that triggered communal clashes on December 16, 17 and 18. They say the violence fuelled tensions in parts of Kanker as well as Bharanda village in neighbouring Narayanpur district.
On Tuesday, a conversion-related dispute triggered a standoff in the village, leading to the deployment of 100 police personnel. It was followed by 12 hours of negotiations between the villagers. While district authorities said they managed to broker peace, some village leaders claimed the converted families had been given “a month’s time to return to the tribal culture”.
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