On March 8, the Hindu Munnani extremist group in Tamil Nadu attacked a Christian group that was distributing aid to the poor on false accusation of forced conversions before being detained and abused by the police.
According to Morning Star News, Reverend Perumal Kanagaraj and around 30 Christian youths from Viluppuram Church of South India were helping the poor in Anumandai village.
Shortly after the Christians arrived, the Hindu Munnani extremist group confronted them and started to beat them.
"The Hindu Munnani activist soon lost his cool and started beating the youth missionaries while he continued abusing them in extremely foul language," Reverend Kanagaraj told Morning Star News. "Within no time the crowd started gathering and he held us up there and was not letting us move."
Even before the Christians called the local police for help, the extremists had filed a case against the Christians.
When the police arrived, they took the Christians under custody. "They spoke ill about Christianity and slapped us as we stood there in the police station helplessly. We requested that the police not lodge any cases against the youths, fearing that police cases would affect their careers," Reverend Kanagaraj explained.
According to reports from Morning Star News, a police officer spoke abusively in order to provoke the Christian youth. When it did not work, he released them and told them not to enter Anumandai.
Revered Kanagaraj's church has been helping the local poor with essentials such as grain, clothing and flashlights for three years. Now he and his coworkers are stopped from returning to Anumandai village and the poor have to look for these essentials by themselves or stay without them.
