A Christian pastor from Dhenkanal district in Odisha was brutally assaulted by a mob of approximately 40 people during a prayer meeting on January 4. Pastor Bipin Bihari Naik was beaten, forced to consume cow dung, and compelled to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’, a Hindu religious slogan praising the Hindu god Ram, by members of the Bajrang Dal and local villagers.
The incident occurred when Naik was conducting a prayer meeting at a house in Parjang village, a Hindu-majority area with only seven Christian families. The mob gathered outside the house and demanded that the pastor come out. When he requested to finish the prayer first, they forcibly entered the premises.
“They started beating everyone inside the house. Besides us, there were seven families who were praying with us. My children and I managed to run out of the house and rushed through a narrow alley towards the nearest police station,” Vandana, Naik’s wife, told the media.
The pastor became the primary target of the attack. He was dragged outside and beaten with sticks on different parts of his body. The attackers smeared red sindoor, a vermilion powder used in Hindu religious rituals, across his face and placed a garland of slippers around his neck before parading him through the village for nearly two hours.
Vandana reached the police station and pleaded with officers to rescue her husband. However, she alleged that the police delayed their response. Speaking to the media, she said, “It was only after nearly two hours that the police reached the village.” She added that officers initially misled her, claiming there was no one in the village. When she insisted on accompanying them, she discovered the horrific scene.
“My husband was tied to a Hanuman temple in the village. Both his hands were tied behind a rod. He was forced to consume cow dung and was bleeding badly. People were slapping him and forcing him to chant Jai Shri Ram,” she recounted.
Even after police intervention, the mob did not stop immediately. Naik was eventually rescued and taken to the police station, where a social activist reported that he sat for nearly an hour without receiving medical assistance. “By the time I reached there, he was sitting there numbly. He was barefoot, and his face still had sindoor on it. He was in a horrible condition,” the activist told the media.
A social activist alleged that the police attempted to dilute the matter and initially refused to register a complaint, citing counter-allegations of conversion made by the village sarpanch, or village head. The mob had accused Naik of conducting forced religious conversions. While the police eventually registered a complaint about the assault after repeated insistence, a counter FIR, or First Information Report, was also filed against the pastor on the same grounds.
Despite the violence, Vandana said her husband refused to give in. “I am so proud of him. He did not chant Jai Shri Ram, no matter how much they beat him.”
The family is currently staying in a safe house along with other community members. The seven Christian families from Parjang village have gone into hiding after the mob threatened to burn down their homes. “We spoke to them, and they are currently staying with relatives in different places. They have no support. The villagers have boycotted them and are threatening them,” Vandana said.
The mob also threatened to burn Naik’s family and house, located a few kilometres from the village. “We are both deeply traumatised. Naik has not been able to sleep since the incident. He has been taking medicines and is feeling a little better now. He has also recovered from his injuries,” she stated.
The incident is part of a broader pattern of attacks against Christians in Odisha. The Bajrang Dal, youth wing of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, a Hindu nationalist organisation, has been frequently linked to such incidents. Odisha has witnessed multiple attacks against the Christian community, particularly since the Bharatiya Janata Party came to power in the state in 2024.
