- The images show Christmas decorations being torn down.
- An incident of vandalism was also reported from Assam in India.
- Christians in Pakistan celebrate the festival with enthusiasm.
Christmas celebrations have turned sour for the Christian community in India after a violent mob attacked and vandalized decorations in Raipur, the capital of Chhattisgarh.
A mob armed with wooden sticks vandalized Christmas decorations and installations at a shopping center on Wednesday, ahead of the festival, according to The Indian Express.
The group – believed to consist of 30-40 masked men – stormed the mall during a Chhattisgarh bandh organized to protest alleged violence linked to religious conversions in Kanker.
Footage of the incident showed suspects moving around the mall and destroying decorations put up ahead of the Christian holiday.
The police registered a first information report (FIR) based on a complaint by the mall management against unidentified individuals following the incident, India today reported.
In another such incident, the Vishva Hindu Parishad Bajrang Dal vandalized a school during Christmas preparations in Assam’s Nalbari district.
Members of the far-right party also set fire and damaged festival items, while staging a protest against Christmas celebrations in Nalbari, according to a report by The Hindu.
Last month, a US report recommended designating India as a country of “particular concern” due to religious bias and serious violations of religious freedom.
The US Commission on International Religious Freedom, in its report, denounced religious discrimination in India and the extremist policies of the RSS and the Hindutva agenda of the BJP.
The report reveals that Modi and the BJP implemented discriminatory policies against minorities, in line with Hindutva ideology.
He adds that the BJP, as the political wing of the RSS, promotes Hindu nationalism.
The RSS has been implicated in acts of violence against minorities, notably Muslims and Sikhs, for decades.
Meanwhile, Christians around the world celebrate Christmas with religious devotion and traditional celebrations, joining millions of believers around the world in observing the holiday.
In Pakistan, prayer ceremonies were also held by the Christian community during the festival.
Churches in Karachi were decorated as security was tightened around them across the city. At St. Patrick’s Church in Saddar, the community marked the festival with enthusiasm.
In Lahore, colorful celebrations began as soon as the clock struck midnight, with churches adorned with multi-colored lights for the occasion.
