A mob of angry Hindu villagers from Malkangiri district in Odisha beat up five Christians with bamboo rods for refusing to recant their faith on November 1.
All five victims were recent converts to Christianity and were told to return to Hinduism. According to local reports, the mob threatened to kill the five believers if they do not recant their Christian faith.
In spite of death threats, the five Christians refused to give up on their new-found faith and were in turn beaten mercilessly with bamboo rods.
"We were beaten very badly with sticks by the villagers because we accepted Christ," one of the victims told International Christian Concern (ICC). "Earlier we were also threatened and persecuted in 2017, but the issue was resolved peacefully."
Local Christians reported the incident at Kalimela Police Station and an FIR was filed. The police has promised to investigate the attack and punish the people involved in it.
At present, the five Christians are in a hospital in Kalimela.
