Guwahati Baptist Church Damaged and Pastor Injured

New Delhi, October 30, 2008: The North East India’s Gateway city of Guwahati rocked with ever heavy terror strike this morning. 50 reported died and over 300 injured. Shops burnt and Guwahati Baptist Church and Pastor’s quarter damaged. All India Christian Council condemns the blast and appeals to the public of Guwahati to maintain calm and peace among all societies.

The sources reaching to All India Christian Council (aicc), the serial blast took place in four places in Ganeshguri, District Court, Panbazar and Fancy Bazaar at around 10 AM. The serial blast also reported in Barpeta, Kokrajhar and Bongaigaon in lower Assam.

Rev. M. Haokhothong, Former Treasurer of Council of Baptist Churches in North East India, reports to aicc, “Around fifteen shops belonging to Guwahati Baptist Church in Panbazar gutted in bomb blast.” “The front portion of the church building and half of the pastor’s quarter got burnt and pastor injured,” Rev. Haokhothong added.

The Council condemns the barbaric nature of terror blast in North East gateway city of Guwahati.

Dr. Sam Paul, Public Affair National Secretary of aicc, while condemning the barbaric nature of terror strike, says, “There is no place for terror in civil society. Every Indian citizen must be united to terrorism in the country.”

The residents of Guwahati came out in anger against the terror blast. The mobs burnt the government and public properties, vehicles on road. The district magistrate ordered curfew in Guwahati city to stop the mob anger.

Dr. Paul also appeals the public of Guwahati and North Eastern states to maintain peace and calm at this tragic hit of the terror and cooperate with security forces to fight against the terror. “The Council condoles the bereaved families of death victims and injured persons,” added Dr. Paul.

A chronology of some of the major attacks in India in the past five years:[1]

March 13, 2003 – A bomb attack on a commuter train in Mumbai kills 11 people.
Aug 25, 2003 – Two car bombs kill about 60 in Mumbai.
Aug 15, 2004 – A bomb explodes in the northeastern state of Assam, killing 16 people, mostly schoolchildren, and wounding dozens.
Oct 29, 2005 – Sixty-six people are killed when three blasts rip through markets in New Delhi.
March 7, 2006 – At least 15 people are killed and 60 wounded in three blasts in the Hindu pilgrimage city of Varanasi.
July 11, 2006 – More than 180 people are killed in seven bomb explosions at railway stations and on trains in Mumbai that are blamed on Islamist militants.
Sept 8, 2006 – At least 35 people are killed in a series of explosions, including one near a mosque, in Malegaon town, 260 km (160 miles) northeast of Mumbai.
Feb 19, 2007 – Two bombs explode aboard a train heading from India to Pakistan; at least 66 passengers, most of them Pakistanis, burn to death.
May 18, 2007 – A bomb explodes during Friday prayers at a historic mosque in the southern city of Hyderabad, killing 11 worshippers. Police later shoot dead five people in clashes with hundreds of enraged Muslims who protest against the attack.
Aug 25, 2007 – Three coordinated explosions at an amusement park and a street stall in Hyderabad kill at least 40 people.
May 13, 2008 – Seven bombs rip through the crowded streets of the western city of Jaipur, killing at least 63 people in markets and outside Hindu temples.
July 25 – Eight small bombs hit the IT city of Bangalore, killing at least one woman and wounding at least 15.
July 26 – At least 16 small bombs explode in Ahmedabad in the state of Gujarat, killing 45 people and wounding 161. A little-known group called the “Indian Mujahideen” claims responsibility for the attack and the May 13 attack in Jaipur.
Sept 13 – At least five bombs explode in crowded markets and streets in the heart of New Delhi, killing at least 23 people and injuring more than 100. The Indian Mujahideen again claim responsibility.
Oct 30 – Eleven bomb blasts in quick succession rip through the main city of India’s troubled northeastern Assam state and three other towns, killing at least 39 people and wounding 210.
The All India Christian Council (www.christiancouncil.in), birthed in 1998, exists to protect and serve the Christian community, minorities, and the oppressed castes. The aicc is a coalition of thousands of Indian denominations, organizations, and lay leaders.

Released by

Madhu Chandra
Regional Secretary
All India Christian Council
9868184939