05/13/2019 India (International Christian Concern) – According to Morning Star News, the Maranatha Full Gospel Church, located in India’s Bihar state, was burned by Hindu radicals the night before Easter Sunday. In spite of the damage to the church, local Christians still gathered in the burned church for Easter worship.

Pastor Anil Juit, head pastor of the church, discovered that the church had been burned when he opened the building’s doors on Easter morning. In an interview with Morning Star News, Pastor Juit explained that he found a gaping hole in the back wall of the church and that everything had been gathered up and burned in a heap.

On the outside wall of the church, Pastor Juit also found that someone had written “Jai Sri Ram” which translates to Hail lord Ram. “It is evident from the slogan that this work is the work of some Hindu radicals,” Pastor Juit told Morning Star News.

Pastor Juit reported the incident to local police on April 22, but officers told the pastor not to mention the fire in the complaint. The police encouraged Pastor Juit to report that the church was only vandalized.

Now, the local media is portraying the incident as part of a robbery. This is something that Pastor Juit refutes.

“Nothing was stolen from inside the church, but a burnt heap of Bibles, religious books, drums, tambourine, banners, mats, etc. was found,” Pastor Juit told Morning Star News.

“I have not been called for verification by the police since my complaint,” Pastor Juit reported to Morning Star News. “It is evident that no investigations have been done so far.”

For interviews, please contact Olivia Miller, Communications Coordinator: [email protected].