On Sunday (Oct 29), the Indian state of Kerala was rocked by serial blasts at a meeting of the Jehovah’s Witnesses in Ernakulam. Two women were killed and more than 50 were injured in the attack. The man, identified as Dominic Martin, was behind the attack and he was a former member of the community. Martin surrendered at a police station in Thrissur, around 40 kilometres from the site of the blasts.
This explosion in Kerala caused India’s national capital New Delhi, and the country’s financial capital Mumbai, among others to be on alert. The explosion has raised safety concerns about members of the Jehovah’s Witnesses in India. The group has about 60,000 followers in India.
trending nowWho are Jehovah’s Witnesses?
Jehovah’s Witnesses are an international Christian denomination founded in the United States around 1870. According to a report by the news agency Reuters, the community is known in many countries for door-to-door evangelism. It accepts some ideas of Christianity and believes that the world will end very soon.
The community believes in Jesus Christ but does not believe that he is the Almighty God. Jw.org, a website that provides all details about the community, says that the community offers prayers in Jesus’ name, adding, “We believe that Jesus is the Head, or the one appointed to have authority, over every man.”
However, the website adds that it is different from other religious groups that are called Christian.
“For example, we believe that the Bible teaches that Jesus is the Son of God, not part of a Trinity. We do not believe that the soul is immortal, that there is any basis in Scripture for saying that God tortures people in an everlasting hell, or that those who take the lead in religious activities should have titles that elevate them above others,” the website further says.
The community’s presence in India
According to jw.org, Jehovah’s Witnesses have been present in India since 1905. The community established an office in Mumbai (then called Bombay) in 1926 and obtained legal registration in 1978. The community benefits from the guarantees of the Indian constitution, which include the right to practice, profess, and propagate one’s faith.
“Jehovah’s Witnesses generally worship without hindrance in India. However, in some states, they have been victims of mob attacks and other acts of religious intolerance,” the website adds.
A landmark case involving the community was Bijoe Emmanuel vs State of Kerala. The case was about three children from the community- Bijoe, Binu Mol and Bindu Emmanuel, who were expelled from school in 1985 after they refused to sing India’s national anthem.
As per court documents, when the anthem was played during the morning assembly, the children stood res
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