Convent attacked in Panipat, one held

NEW DELHI, MARCH 12. Two days after an alleged attack on a church in Haryana's Samalkha town, armed dacoits looted a Christian convent in Panipat district in the wee hours of Saturday, a Christian organisation alleged here today.

An armed gang of 10 persons barged into the Franciscan Sisters of Our Lady of Graces convent in the wee hours of Saturday, broke the doors and looted petty cash kept in the rooms, United Christian Forum for Human Rights alleged.

No one was injured in the attack as five Sisters (nuns) who were shocked saved themselves by locking themselves inside another room, the forum's national convenor, Mr. John Dayal, told PTI.

Hearing the cries of the Sisters, a Sikh family staying in the neighbourhood came to their rescue and caught one of the attackers and later handed him over to the police, Mr. Dayal said.

Police had registered a case of dacoity and deployed security guards outside the convent in the aftermath of the incident, he said.

Unidentified intruders had allegedly looted the Isht Mata Catholic church in Samalkha in the wee hours of Thursday and made off with about Rs. 60,000.

No one was injured in the attack and Father Aseem Raj, the priest, saved his life by bolting himself in the bathroom of his bedroom.

``We are deeply concerned at the increasing number of threats that our church and schools have received in recent days from communal elements, who have remained anonymous,'' Mr. Dayal said.

- PTI

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