Tag: Dalits

Pakistani policeman beats up church leader over ‘loudspeaker music’

June 16, 2016 Pakistan Caste, Dalits, Deobandi, Islamic extremism, Kasur, Lahore, Pakistan Peoples Party, Pentecostals, Police, Punjab

The Pentecostal United Church in Lahore, Pakistan, where Riaz Rehmat is pastor.World Watch Monitor A church leader in Lahore was beaten up during his Sunday service by a policeman, during a dispute over whether or not music was being played over his church loudspeaker. Lahore has the largest concentration . . . Read More

Pakistan NGO tackles demeaning low-caste word for ‘Christians’

November 2, 2015 Pakistan Caste, Constitution, Dalits, Pakistan, Sweepers, Youhanabad

A program organised by Bargad, Pakistan’s biggest NGO for youth development, is attempting to tackle the social stigma Christians face from the word used in the Constitution for them. The Urdu “Isai” (derived from “Isa“, the Arabic word for “Jesus” used in the Qur’an) now carries strong overtones – from . . . Read More

No charges for attackers of Pakistani headmaster

October 25, 2015 Pakistan Dalits, Education, Kasur

Siddique Azam, headmaster of eight schools in Pakistan’s Kasur district, after release from the hospital following a 5 Oct. beating.Courtesy Pakistan Christian Post A Christian headmaster hospitalized from a severe beating by four primary-school colleagues has been blocked from pressing criminal charges against his attackers. The incident in Pakistan’s . . . Read More

Indian beef ban hits ‘untouchable’ Dalits hardest

March 13, 2015 India Bangalore, Beef, BJP, Dalits, Hindutva, Maharashtra, Mumbai, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal

A national ban on beef, the cheapest meat in India, would hurt all of India’s tribal peoples.Meena Kadri / Flickr / CC The west Indian state of Maharashtra, run by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), caused a commotion last week when it received Federal approval to enforce . . . Read More

We meant what we said

December 30, 2014 India Bihar, Converts, Dalits, Hindu nationalism, India

Between 30 and 40 recent Indian converts to Christianity have signed their names to a petition to re-affirm their decision and to seek police protection from intimidation by fundamentalist Hindu groups that want to bring the Dalits back to Hinduism. The petition claims that several nationalist groups have been intruding . . . Read More

India minister says no special caste status for Christians

October 27, 2014 India BJP, Caste, Converts, Dalits, Haryana, Maharashtra

Winnowing grain in a Dalit village near Madurai, Tamil Nadu. 2006 photo.Matteo / Flickr / Creative Commons India should not extend government job and education assistance to the country’s poorest Christians, India’s social justice minister, Thavar Chand Gehlot, said this month. For one thing, he said, there are no . . . Read More

India’s government has to limit Hindu extremists

May 15, 2014 India BJP, Dalits, Hindu nationalism, India, Narendra Modi, Women

India’s nationalist “Bharatiya Janata Party” (BJP) has won the election and its leader Narendra Modi, announced “a new era for India, free from corruption and a strong economic recovery”. Indian citizens are hoping for a prosperous future, but according to the Global Council of Indian Christians in order for this . . . Read More

Christian party asserts Dalit rights in Indian elections debut

May 12, 2014 India Andhra Pradesh, Caste, Dalits

India’s low-caste citizens are taking a sizable step into politics with a newly formed Christian political party and a campaign dedicated to earning seats in a new state assembly. The election closed on May 12 for the residents of Seemandhra, a new state carved out of India’s southern state of . . . Read More

Pakistani university refuses prosperous work to Christians

March 17, 2014 Pakistan Dalits, Pakistan Muslim League, Shahbaz Bhatti

A public university in Pakistan defies court orders and misleads government authorities to avoid giving federally approved jobs to non-Muslims, a Christian politician in the nation’s ruling party says. In May 2009 the government passed a law requiring 5% of jobs to be allocated to religious minorities. The University of . . . Read More

Bishops arrested at Dalit protest

December 12, 2013 India Caste, Dalits, Delhi, India

Bishops were arrested by police in India during a protest against the discrimination of the Christian Dalit minority. Archbishop Anil Couto of Delhi was among those arrested during the protest on 11 December. He and several other bishops were taken to a local police station and later released, reports UCA. . . . Read More

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