Bhubaneswar

Police in Odisha’s Dhenkanal district have detained four individuals in connection with the alleged assault of a man accused of carrying out religious conversions, officials said on Thursday.

The action followed a complaint filed by the victim’s wife, who alleged that her husband was attacked by a mob, publicly humiliated and paraded with a garland of shoes around his neck. Dhenkanal Superintendent of Police Abhinav Sonkar said the detentions were made after questioning several people in connection with the incident.

“Based on the complaint lodged by the wife of pastor Bipin Naik, four persons have been detained so far. A case has been registered at Parjang police station under multiple provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita,” Sonkar said.

The injured man has undergone medical examinations and statements of witnesses are being recorded as part of the investigation, the SP added.

Although the incident took place on January 4 within the jurisdiction of Parjang police station, it came to official notice only after the complaint was submitted by the victim’s wife, following which police initiated a probe, another officer said.

According to the complaint, a group of around 15 to 20 people allegedly arrived at the man’s residence armed with bamboo sticks while he was praying. The mob reportedly assaulted him, forcibly applied vermilion on his forehead, garlanded him with footwear and marched him through the village.

The victim, who belongs to the Christian community, was also allegedly forced to bow before a temple, his family claimed.

The man’s wife denied allegations that her husband was involved in religious conversions.

Addressing claims that the victim was forced to drink water from a drain, SP Sonkar said preliminary findings did not substantiate the allegation.

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Police said further investigation is underway to identify others involved in the incident and ascertain the full sequence of events.