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Kokrajhar, Feb. 6: A family at North Bhamraguri under Patgaon police outpost in Kokrajhar district was forced to seek police help after fellow villagers attacked them for converting into a different religion.
The house of Motilal Basumatary and his family, who converted in May last year, was first vandalised on December 13 and then again on February 2. They lodged an FIR at Serfanguri police station on February 3.
Basumatary said he and his family, like other villagers, used to practise the traditional religion but had converted to get relief from the disease of a family member.
The conversion, however, did not go down well with the villagers, who believe all of them should continue with the religion their forefathers had been practising since centuries.
Village headman Rupath Wary said the village followed the traditional religion and the villagers wanted Basumatary and his family to stick to it. They had no information about the conversion till recently, when the annual religious session of the village was held, he added.
Wary said the villagers asked Basumatary to talk to his family and re-convert. “The villagers believe all of us should continue with our old-age religion,” he said. “They have nothing against any other religion.”
H.C. Nath, a police officer at Patgaon police outpost, said the victim’s family had lodged an FIR against the villagers and a case (number 9/2013) was registered under Sections 153(A), 143, 447 and 427 of IPC.
He appealed to both parties to maintain peace and harmony.
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