Ranchi, beheaded pastor was a tribal, a 'peripheral' being

The Rev. Abraham Tigga Topno was kidnapped on the night of May 1, beaten and beheaded. The tribal Christians "exploited and marginalized" more than all others. "Partisan interests want to divide us". Double accusation against Christians: "Maoists, but also anti-national".

Mumbai (AsiaNews) - The Pentecostal Christian pastor beheaded near Ranchi, in Jharkhand, was a tribal, informs Msgr. Paschal Topno, Archbishop emeritus of Bhopal, in Madhya Pradesh. According to the prelate, the real reason for the reverend's murder is to be found in his aboriginal origins. "Being a tribal Christian in India - he says - means being peripheral. Tribal Christians face the greatest challenges ".

Meanwhile, police investigations continue to identify the perpetrators of the murder of the Rev. Abraham Tigga Topno, kidnapped on the night of May 1, beaten and beheaded. Next to his lifeless body a note with the signature of the alleged killer was found, an armed Maoist group named People's Liberation Guerrilla Army (Plga).

Msgr. Topno also has tribal origins and knows the forms of marginalization and abuse that ethnic groups are subjected to. He complains that "we tribal Christians are accused of being in favor of Naxalite [name indicating the Maoist guerrillas in India, ed.]. These false accusations are spread to torment us. At the same time, we are blamed for being anti-national, we are being harassed by radical groups, who try to sow suspicion even among our tribal brothers ".

The Archbishop adds: "I am a tribal of the Munda ethnic group and [I realize] that partisan interests want to divide us on the basis of our Christian tribal identity or of the animist religions of our ancestors. It is not uncommon for us to be boycotted by society ".

Moreover, he concludes, "with the anti-conversion law and the law on land ownership, the tribals suffer because of further forms of marginalization and exploitation". The anti-conversion law seeks to maintain firmly the caste structure of society, condemning the tribals to a form of quasi-slavery; the land tenure law allows anyone rich to seize the land of the tribes”.