Catholic church near Mumbai attacked

CCTV footage showed three men arriving on a motorcycle with their faces covered with handkerchiefs and throwing sones.

Mumbai:  Unidentified men threw stones at the Syro-Malabar rite St George Catholic Church in New Panvel, near Mumbai, early on Saturday and damaged the glass enclosure of the statue of Saint George.

Christian leaders and parishioners have lodged police complaint at Khandeshwar police station.

''These communal goons are emboldened by the indifference of the government at the Centre and the state, and therefore continue perpetrating such heinous crimes with impunity," said Abraham Mathai, The former vice chairperson of Maharashtra minorities commission and currently the president of Indian Christian Voice.

Parishioners said from CCTV footage they know three people attacked the Church at 1.30am. The men with faces covered with handkerchiefs came outside the church on a motorcycle and hurled stones at the statue of Saint George.

Bishop Thomas Elavanal of Kalyan diocese under which the parish comes has condemned the attack. The church was opened in 2007.

The assistant commissioner of police (Panvel division) SB Suryavanshi told said the attackers "had thrown stones at the church entrance from the roadside and fled. A case has been registered at the Khandeshwar police station for further investigation.''

Source: Times of India