by Nirmala Carvalho

The suspect, Mohamed Abdul Jamil, has stabbed Dr. Rajan Daniel eight times. Motives still unknown. The Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) criticizes the silence of the Indian government and denounces growing radicalism - Hindu and Muslim - in India.

Mumbai (AsiaNews) - A brutal murder has schocked the Indian Christian community in the UAE: Dr. Rajan Daniel, 58, urologist at the Ahalia Hospital in Abu Dhabi, was killed with eight stab wounds by Mohamed Abdul Jamil, 46, a Pakistani national. A native of Kerala, the Christian doctor died on the spot: after hearing the screams, the hospital staff found his body in a pool of blood, with a deep wound in the throat. The police immediately stopped Jamil, who for the moment remains the only suspect. The incident occurred in the late afternoon of November 1. The victim leaves behind a wife and a son. For Sajan George, president of the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC), this murder indicates the "fragility of the Christian community" abroad, and denounces the "grave indifference" of the Indian authorities before the "brutal murder of a Christian."

For the moment, the investigation has failed to reveal any details. Jamil was native to eastern Pakistan's tribal areas, but it is not clear what brought him to Abu Dhabi. The police believe that the murderer may have been a patient of the victim, but the causes of his action are still unknown.

According to Sajan George "the government of Pakistan and its allies have already started to make up stories to justify the murder." However, he adds, "lack of justice on the part of the Government of Kerala, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Prime Minister" is even more serious, which still have failed move to "give justice to the doctor's family."

Although it happened in the UAE, the president of the GCIC says the assassination of Dr. Daniel once again highlights the problem of "growing fundamentalism" and the "radicalization of Indian society." These elements, said Sajan George, "are putting lives, property, and public liberty and private life of the Christian community in danger " in addition to "affecting the development of the nation, in particular the well-being of the poor and marginalized."

For the Christian leader, ultra-nationalist Hindu and the silence of the authorities are responsible for these radical movements. However, he notes, "even the tentacles of Islamic fundamentalism are spreading." In this sense, the Popular Front of India (PFI), a confederation of Muslim organizations in the country, which has about 800 thousand members, is a primary concern.

Despite the PFI 's claims to defend the human rights of all communities, many believe it is responsible for feeding a climate of tension, as was recently the case with mass internal exodus, following the tensions in Assam. It is also the case of some recent statements by KM Shareef, national general secretary of the Confederation: in defending themselves against accusations of links to terrorism in Pakistan, he attempted to put the neighboring nation in a bad light, saying that "maintaining friendly ties with Pakistan should be avoided not only not to promote terrorism, but also to avoid indulging in activities such as human trafficking of Hindu girls. " A criticism indirectly addressed to the central government, which this past year has been trying to re-establish relations with the country.

• india
• pakistan
• UAE
• murder
• christian
• muslim
• fundamentalism