FIR filed 4 days after attack on Christian priests in Jabalpur

Jabalpur: Four days after two Catholic priests were allegedly attacked by right-wing activists in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, police registered a First Information Report (FIR) on Friday. No arrests have been made so far.

The delay in police action has triggered political outrage. A day earlier, opposition MPs led by the Congress staged a walkout from the Lok Sabha after the Speaker disallowed a discussion on the incident.

“We have registered an FIR under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. People seen in the videos have been identified. I will need to check the exact sections invoked,” city superintendent of police Satish Kumar Sahu told PTI, without sharing further details.

The incident took place on March 31 on the premises of Ranjhi police station, where Jabalpur Catholic diocese vicar general Father Davis George and diocesan corporation secretary Father George Thomas were allegedly attacked. Davis George is a former principal of St Aloysius College.

According to Atul Joseph, district coordinator of the Rashtriya Isai Mahasangh, around 50 people, including women and children from the tribal-dominated Mandla district, were visiting churches in Jabalpur as part of Lent observances. Right-wing activists reportedly intercepted their bus and forced it to the Ranjhi police station, accusing them of religious conversion.

Joseph said Fathers Davis and Thomas, along with Felix Barla, secretary of the St Peter and Paul Cathedral, went to the police station to assist the detained pilgrims. “They were pushed and slapped. A video shows a woman slapping a priest. Eventually, the police released the pilgrims and the priests and dispersed the crowd,” he said.

On Thursday, more than 500 members of the Christian community staged a protest in Jabalpur, demanding action against those involved. Madhya Pradesh, governed by the BJP, has one of the most stringent anti-conversion laws in the country.