Police have filed three separate cases at Edka police station following complaints received from tribals, tribal Christians and police about alleged attacks on them.
Sana Ejaz | TwoCircles.net
PATNA (BIHAR) — Police on Sunday arrested five more persons in connection with a clash between two tribal groups over alleged religious conversion in Chhattisgarh’s Narayanpur district, an official said.
Till now eight people have been arrested in connection with the incident which took place in Gorra village under Edka police station limits on January 1, Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range) Sundarraj P said.
Police had on January 3 arrested three persons, including a local Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader.
Five more persons arrested on Sunday have been identified as Premsagar Netam (48), Lacchu Karanga (32), Santuram Dugga (35), Punuram Dugga (45) and Rajman Karanga (46), all residents of Narayanpur district, the official said.
They were produced before a local court which sent them to judicial custody, he said.
Three separate cases were registered at Edka police station following complaints received from tribals, tribal Christians and police about alleged attacks on them, police said.
There have been reports of unrest at various villages in the Benoor area of the district for the last two months over the issue of alleged religious conversion.
The tribal Christians from various villages in Chhattisgarh allege large-scale violence against them because of their allegiance to the Christian faith forcing them to flee.
Chhattisgarh: What made tribal Christians flee from their villages amid anti-Christian violence?
On January 2, a church was vandalised and six police personnel, including an IPS officer, were injured in Narayanpur city during a protest by a group of tribals against the alleged religious conversion in the tribal-dominated area. (With PTI inputs)
Sana Ejaz is an independent journalist from Bihar. She tweets @SanaEjaz_