Trinamool Congress Fact-Finding Team Reports Attacks on Christians, Church Vandalism in West Bengal

KOLKATA, October 12, 2026: A fact-finding team of the opposition All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) has reported incidents of attacks on Christians, church vandalism and denial of burial rights in several parts of West Bengal since the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power in the state in May.

Led by Rajya Sabha MP Sagarika Ghose, the three-member team visited Christian institutions and educational establishments in Kolkata, North 24 Parganas and Paschim Medinipur districts on the instructions of party chief Mamata Banerjee. The team met members of Christian communities to document their concerns and explore ways to assist those affected.

In a series of posts on X on October 11, Ghose said the team had received accounts of threats and physical attacks against Christians who refused to convert to Hinduism, restrictions on burial rights and obstacles to developing church property or accessing irrigation facilities for agriculture.

She also reported that prayer gatherings had been disrupted by loud music and that mobs had vandalised churches.

The team, which included lawyer Sirsanya Bandopadhyay and Maria Fernandes, met the Archbishop of Kolkata. According to Ghose, the Archbishop expressed serious concern over the reported attacks and their implications for democracy and humane values.

During a visit to Auxilium Convent at Simultala in Barasat, North 24 Parganas district, the sisters described threats from a mob over construction work on land they said they legally owned.

The team also received reports of an attack on a Christian congregation and vandalism at a church in Jalalkhali, Krishnagar.

At Christ the King Church in Balichak, Paschim Medinipur district, community members told the visitors that the body of a Christian had been forcibly exhumed and cremated in Moninathpur village. Ghose further reported complaints about restrictions on water supply and access to burial grounds for Christians.

The team also visited Divine Mercy Church in Bamanpukur, North 24 Parganas district. Ghose said a self-styled Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) activist, Swami Shivananda, had threatened the parish priest and pastors, demanding that their congregations return to Hinduism.

“The courageous priest, Father Pradeep Dari, says Christians and Hindus have always lived in peace, but the law-abiding residents of the Christian village are now fearful,” Ghose said.

Bandopadhyay, in a separate social media post shared by Ghose, described the incidents as part of a systematic campaign against Christians since the change of government on May 4. She also referred to reports of attacks and persecution affecting Hindus and Muslims.

“The common exasperation was that we are not being allowed to profess and practice our religion by Hindu outfits in the name of Parishads and Manchs,” Bandopadhyay said.

Calling for attention to the situation, Ghose said West Bengal had a longstanding tradition of pluralism and warned against allowing religious hostility to divide the state. She also referred to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s visit to the Missionaries of Charity in Kolkata in May, saying the international community should take note of the situation.

The team’s statements have not yet been independently verified. The report did not specify whether police complaints had been filed in connection with the incidents. The state government and police had not issued an immediate response to the claims as of October 12.

Courtesy: The Telegraph Online