Bhubaneswar, January 23 (KMS): A Christian pastor in Odisha’s Dhenkanal district was brutally assaulted, publicly humiliated and forced to consume cow dung by a Hindutva mob on allegations of religious conversion.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the victim, identified as Pastor Bipin Bihari Naik, was attacked in Parjang village — a predominantly Hindu area with only a handful of Christian families. The pastor, his wife Vandana and others were in a prayer meeting when a mob of 15 to 20 people asked Naik to come outside the house, which he refused, saying he would first complete the prayer.
Vandana said that the mob then forcibly entered the house and began assaulting all attendees. The Hindutva mob dragged Naik outside, beat him with sticks, smeared red vermilion (sindoor) on his face, and garlanded him with slippers and paraded him through the village in a humiliating spectacle, she said. The mob then tied him to a temple, forced him to eat cow dung, and coerced him into chanting Hindu religious slogans.