All family members were injured praying at home and were taken to hospital by police. Some 30 people stormed the house and are now on the run. According to the initial investigation, the head of the family was accused of singing and praying too loudly and engaging in religious propaganda.
Chennai (AsiaNews) - Police in Chennimalai, a city in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, have launched an investigation after dozens of people, allegedly right-wing extremists, attacked a Christian family praying at home.
According to the police report, Samuel, 34, his wife Jennifer, and their three-year-old son live in Kathakkudi Kadu, a village near the city of Herod. Yesterday, his parents Arjunan and Rathinam and younger sister Beulah joined the young family for a prayer when a group of people broke into their home and attacked them.
When the victims tried to videotape the incident, the attackers grabbed and broke their mobile phones, police said.
"More than 30 people went inside the family home, injuring all those present,” the police report reads. “It is thought that villagers, including neighbours, complained to Samuel about loud singing and praying.”
Speaking to the media, Chennimalai Station police inspector M. K. Sarvanan told said that the police quickly reached the scene of the incident, but the attackers by then had already fled.
The police brought Samuel and the rest of the family to the government hospital in Perundurai for treatment. Inspector Sarvanan stressed that the culprits will be identified and brought to justice.
"The reason for the attack is that some people in the village believe that Samuel's family is involved in religious propaganda," local sources explained. The Christian family has denied involvement in such activity.