Guwahati Baptist Church Damaged and Pastor Injured
Christian Council Condemns the Blast and Appeals Public to Maintain Calm and Peace
North East India’s Gateway city of Guwahati rocked with a massive terror strike this morning. 61 reported died and over 300 injured. Shops burned and Guwahati Baptist Church and Pastor’s quarters were damaged.
The All India Christian Council condemns the blast and appeals to the public of Guwahati to maintain calm and peace among all societies.
Sources say the serial blast took place in four places in Ganeshguri, District Court, Panbazar and Fancy Bazaar at around 10 AM. Serial blasts were also reported in Barpeta, Kokrajhar and Bongaigaon in lower Assam.
Rev. M. Haokhothong, Former Treasurer of the 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 quartera burned and the pastor injured,” Rev. Haokhothong added.
Dr. Sam Paul, Public Affair National Secretary of aicc, condemned the barbaric nature of terror strike, saying, “There is no place for terror in civil society. Every Indian citizen must be united against terrorism in the country.”
The residents of Guwahati came out in anger against the terror blast. Mobs burned government and public properties, and vehicles on the road. The district magistrate ordered a curfew in Guwahati city to stop the mob anger.
Dr. Paul also appealed to the public of Guwahati and North Eastern states to maintain peace and calm after this tragic hit of terror and cooperate with security forces to fight against the terror. The Council offered its condolences to the bereaved families of those killed or injured.
A chronology of some of the major attacks in India in the past five years:
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.
Source: The All India Christian Council
