Church-goers attacked, hit back by throwing chilli powder; 12 hurt

Mumbai, December 25

At least 12 people were injured when they were attacked by a group of persons during a prayer meet in Maharashtra's Kolhapur district, police said Tuesday.

The victims were attending the Sunday Mass at the residence of Bhimsen Chauhan in Kolhapur's Kowad village, located on the Karnataka border, when the incident happened around noon, a police official said.

A group of 10-15 men armed with swords, iron rods and glass bottles reached the residence on motorcycles and attacked the congregation, he said.

They threw stones on those attending the prayer and tried to barge into the house. But some women, who were part of the prayer meet, forced the attackers to back off by throwing chilli powder on them, the official said.

Twelve people were injured in the attack and they were admitted to hospital, he said.

Senior police officials were monitoring the situation in the area, he said, adding that efforts were on to ascertain the reason behind the attack. PTI