During a massive protest against the recent attack on a Catholic priest in Kundapur, staged in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s office here on Monday, a gathering comprising over 3,000 people, strongly condemned the incident and urged for a separate legislation to curb violence against minorities across the country.

The protest organised by the Federation of Christian Associations in Karnataka drew people from all sections of the society, social and political leaders, irrespective of their religion and party. In a memorandum submitted to the chief minister through the DC, the protesters alleged that the police had dealt the case with negligence and partiality. It can be recalled here that the priest of Carmel Church at Katkeri near Koteshwara in Kundapur, Fr Silvester Pereira and three of his accompanies, had been assaulted by a group of miscreants during their visit to a local private hospital on June 25, alleging that they were motivating conversion.

The memorandum submitted to the CM complained that the police had followed “delay tactics” in handling the case and had shown “soft corner” towards the miscreants.

Addressing the mass, Federation of Christian Associations in Karnataka President Ronald Colaco demanded for a separate legislation to mitigate attack against the minorities in India, to control the people who cause disorder in the society by taking law in their hands.

“It is the Constitutional right of every Indian citizen to embrace any religion of his choice and lead life on his own. If communalism continues to be an unending trouble here, it will definitely make way for civil wars,” he cautioned.
Mr Colaco said there was no single example of “conversion by force” by the Christian missionaries. “In fact there should not be a concept called ‘conversion by force’, as it is a matter of dealing with hearts. If there have been conversions, they are only among the downtrodden people on the grounds of their utmost willingness,” he observed.

People from economically and socially backward classes have voluntarily embraced Christianity unable to tolerate the negligence they had been facing centuries together in their own religion, Mr Colaco said and challenged that if the organisations condemning conversions have real concern towards the people from lower strata, they should try to uplift them instead of assaulting those who serve for the welfare of all.

Speaking on the occasion, MIFT Founder Chairman M G Hegde said there is no struggle between religions in India but they are struggles between certain polluted minds. “The root cause of this problem is that there are no ‘national leaders’ in India, but there are only leaders of specific political parties,” he said.

MLAs U T Khader, N Yogish Bhat, Abhayachandra Jain, leaders Blasius M D’Souza, Ramanath Rai, B A Moideen Bava, Ivan D’Souza, Roy Castelino and many others were present.