When a Hindu in northern India got rid of the idols in his house after several visits to a church in July, Hindu nationalists found the perfect opportunity to make life a nightmare for a pastor’s family.
Since the Hindu nationalists accused Pastor Avianshu Kalra of desecration of Hindu idols and forcible conversion, he and his family have had to leave their home, his wife has suffered pregnancy complications, and his father has been suspended from his work as a journalist after a defamation suit.
‘My mother was all alone and was terrified,’ Pastor Kalra said, when he and his wife had gone to pick up their son from school and his father was away at work. ‘The mob was shouting ‘We will burn you,’’ he added.’ Officers arrived and took the mob to the police station, but no action was taken.
