VHP, Bajrang Dal members, carrying sticks and rods, raised ‘Jai Shri Ram’ and other inflammatory slogans
NEW DELHI — Members of Hindutva groups, Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal, wreaked havoc on Christmas celebrations in a school in Assam’s Nalbari District on the eve of Christmas on Thursday. The Hindutva members, some carrying sticks and rods and shouting ‘Jai Shri Ram’ and other inflammatory slogans, also damaged festival items at several shops, police said.
A police official said some members of the Hindutva outfit staged a protest against the celebration of Christmas in Nalbari town. “The activists entered the St Mary’s School of Panigaon village and vandalised the preparation of the Christmas Day programme. They burnt down the banner and posters of the celebration,” he added.
The VHP and Bajrang Dal members warned school authorities not to hold Christmas on the school premises, the official said.
“They then went to various shops selling Christmas goods in Nalbari town and set fire to some items in front of the shops near the Jain Mandir in the town,” the officer said.
They also entered several shopping malls and business establishments selling Christmas items and burnt down the goods.
“We don’t want Christian festivals here. Trade in any festival-related items of Indian origin. But we do not accept doing business with a festival of non-Indian origin,” media reports quoted VHP/BD Nalbari District Secretary Bhaskar Deka as saying.
According to local sources, VHP and Bajrang Dal members damaged Christmas-related decorations and materials kept within the school compound and set them on fire.
Eyewitnesses said that members of the Bajrang Dal were the first to enter the campus, during which they allegedly raised slogans such as “Jai Shri Ram,” “Jai Hindu Rashtra,” and “Bharat Mata Ki Jai,” and burnt items prepared for Christmas celebrations. The incident created panic among local residents and led to concerns over law and order in the area.
The incident comes amid reports of similar acts in Nalbari town in recent days, where Christmas decorations displayed at several commercial establishments were allegedly set on fire.
Reacting to the incident, fact-checker Mohammed Zubair said on social media that VHP and Bajrang Dal activists entered St Mary’s School on Christmas Eve, raised slogans and destroyed Christmas decorations. His post drew attention to the incident and sparked wider discussion online.
