Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has yet to comment on the recent spate of attacks made on churches in New Delhi, and India's Christians and Congress Party alike are urging him to denounce the attacks, not only as a sign of support but in a bid to prevent a further escalation of violence.
"The prime minister owes an answer to all.... In fact his silence is eloquent and disturbing," opposition Congress Party spokesman Abhishek Singhvi told ucanews.com.
"The silence of the prime minister encourages those forces which want to create tension in society. Attacks even on places of worship are not taken seriously," added Samuel Jaykumar of the National Council of Churches in India.
Within less than two months, there have already been four attacks on New Delhi churches, the most recent of which was a Marian grotto at a parish church that was found vandalised on Wednesday.
Delhi archdiocese spokesman Savarimuthu Shankar said that they have CCTV footage showing two people riding in tandem on a motorbike breaking the glass in the grotto. He believes that the four attacks, which started last December 1, are not isolated events.
Church leaders are pointing their fingers at Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), a rightwing Hindu-nationalist organization, for the attacks. RSS is the umbrella group of Modi's very own Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has been reportedly pushing for a Hindu-only India.
Many also believe that Christian attacks have increased since Modi assumed his post last May.
But the Hindu groups in question claimed that it is unfair that they are being blamed for the incidents, and contrary to what Father Shankar said, insist that the incidents are actually isolated events.
"These are... essentially related to a law and order issue. We would appreciate it if law enforcement agencies take prompt and timely actions. We would also appreciate if people also have faith in the law enforcement agencies," RSS leader Pradip Joshi told ucanews.com.
"We do not endorse any act of vandalism and it will not be fair to put blame on organizations or individuals if some individuals have been found involved in some incidents," also voiced BJP leader Ravinder Kapur.
