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Pathanamthitta pastors' attackers believed to be in Bombay

D Jose in Trivandrum

Three Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh activists who absconded after attacking two pastors at Kumbazha near Pathanamthitta in the south Indian state of Kerala have escaped to Bombay, according to Superintendent of Police Manoj Abraham.

Abraham told Rediff On The NeT that a special squad headed by a senior officer has been dispatched to Bombay to catch the culprits. But he refused to divulge details, saying it would affect the search.

The three were among 12 RSS activists who waylaid Cyril Thomas and Aby John when they were returning after conducting prayers in a house on February 2.

Nine of the men were arrested immediately and remanded to judicial custody for 15 days. They have now been shifted to the Trivandrum sub-jail for another 15 days.

The SP hoped the three would be caught soon.

But the police have not yet got a clue about the gang of 15 persons which barged into Thomas's house a week before the attack and took away some valuables, including a Bible. They said the group had gone to the house with the intention of attacking the pastor, but he managed to escape.

Though police have questioned 150 persons in connection with the incident, the culprits have not yet been identified.

The SP denied the police were trying to hush up the matter by registering it as a case of theft. He said theft is a more grave offence than mischief, which is bailable and compoundable. "We registered a theft case considering the gravity of the situation and to ensure strong action against the culprits," he said. "If we had registered a case of trespassing, the culprits would have escaped with a fine of Rs 200."

The group stole some vessels thinking they were gold-plated. But when they found they had been deceived, they abandoned one on the way, which the police have recovered.

Meanwhile, local people complain of inaction on the part of the police in arresting the people involved in the attacks on churches and missionaries. One person said failure to arrest the people involved had led to a spurt in the attacks on churches. At least four churches were attacked in Pathanamthitta in January, but the police have been unable to book any of the culprits.

The Maramon convention, which ended at Kozhencherry in the district on Sunday, had also been threatened by militant members of the Sangh Parivar. But the restraint shown by senior Sangh Parivar leaders saw the week-long convention pass off peacefully.

Hindu Eikya Vedi convenor J Sisupalan said Hindu leaders had directed the local workers to co-operate with the church authorities after the youth wing of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), the Democratic Youth Federation of India, took upon itself the task of protecting the convention from any disruption.

The DYFI had kept ready an army of 1,200 trained youths to be deployed at the convention centre. But they were held back after the church declined their help.

The Kerala state page

The Christian attacks row

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