A Christian man was beheaded for his faith in Orissa, India
The victim was called Anant Ram Gand, he was 40 and was the father of five children. Shibu Thomas, founder of the Persecution Relief network told AsiaNews that he "had converted to Christianity nine months ago and had been baptized for only two months. His conversion has aroused the ire of the villagers, mostly Hindu fanatics. They armed the Naxal [Indian Maoist guerrilla, ed] who physically committed the murder ".
The murder took place on 11 February in the village of Raigarh Tehsil, in the district of Nabarangpur. On the day of the murder of Sukbati (38), wife of the victim, went to the nearby village together with her four daughters (aged 13, 11, 3 and 2), while Anant, in the company of the son of 6 years in the name of Purno, he had remained at home.
The child said he woke up at the sound of three men knocking at the door and shouting at his father. Then they tied his hands behind his back and dragged him away. The murderers did not stop even before the crying of the little one chasing them: drove off with ferocity, the three men told him not to follow them. At that point the child reached his uncle’s house nearby and raised the alarm.
Anant’s body was found in the middle of a road, in broad daylight, beheaded. Previously, the skull had been smashed with a stone. The murderous fury was triggered by his conversion to Christianity nine months ago, followed by that of the whole family. According to the locals, the Hindu radicals of the village never accepted it, and used the Naxals to carry out the murder.
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Photo: AsiaNews
