Molestation Charges at Catholic School in India

[Jahnava Nitai Das 2]

Molestation Charges at Catholic School in India

 

CHENNAI, INDIA, October 7, 2002: Over the past one month, a strident anti-Christian movement has been building up in Rajasthan's Ajmer district, concentrated around schools run by missionaries. Today, a ceremony at Bhawanikhera Village, presided over by BJP Ajmer MP Rasa Singh Rawat, took it one step further when twelve Christian couples belonging to the Rawat Samaj were reconverted to Hinduism. The trouble began on September 9 when the hostel warden of St Martin Secondary School, Father Melvin D'Silva, was arrested on charges of pedophilia. Members of various Hindu organizations have been sitting on a dharna (sitdown strike) in the Bhawanikhera village square since, demanding a CBI inquiry into the case, compensation for boys who were allegedly molested by the priest, and the closure of all missionary schools in the district. A recent beating of a student by a vice-principal at St John¹s School has further aggravated the situation.