Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
New Delhi (Agenzia Fides) - "India should be as concerned about its people, as it is about its cows": said Indian Cardinal Baselios Cleemis Thottunkal, the head of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI). The statement was made ahead of his visit to West Bengal during which he plans to meet the nun, over 70 years old, who was attacked and gang raped by robbers in the convent of Jesus and Mary School in Ranaghat (see Fides 17/03/2015). Cardinal Thottunkal said: "The country has a responsibility towards all of us – every human being – and not just cows".
After the violence, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he was "deeply concerned" and called for a detailed report on the incident. The attack is one of the latest in a series of incidents reflecting the country’s growing number of rapes over the past several years. According to local sources, the comments published by Hindu nationalist groups in preceding weeks in West Bengal have instigated animosity against Christian and Muslim minorities. On the other hand, these groups have asked for and obtained stricter laws against the killing of cows, sacred animal in Hinduism. The state of Maharashtra has banned the sale of beef and the state of Haryana has imposed strict sanctions for the slaughter of cows. Campaigns to protect livestock are often used to denigrate religious minorities, Christians and Muslims, who eat beef. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 20/03/2015)
