Odisha pastor beaten, paraded over conversion suspicion; 4 detained

Key Highlights

• The victim has been identified as Bipin Bihari Nayak, a pastor.
• According to the complaint, a group of 15 to 20 people armed with bamboo sticks entered his house while he was praying, assaulted him and forcibly dragged him outside. advertisementThe attackers allegedly garlanded him with slippers, applied vermilion on his forehead and paraded him through the village.
• The family has further alleged that the pastor was forced to bow in front of a temple before being handed over to the police.
• Local residents had accused the pastor of being involved in religious conversion.
• However, his family has strongly denied the allegations, calling the incident an act of mob violence without any legal basis. The case came to light after the pastor’s wife approached senior police officials, alleging inaction by the local police for nearly a week after the incident.