Author:
Publication: Star Of Mysore
Date: January 19, 2005
Faith Healer turns Fake Healer as
18 agents including 16 from Kanyakumari arrested in Kodagu village. Chair-bound
paralytic patient walks up to journalists and shakes hands!
T.J.S. George, the noted journalist,
in his weekly column Point of View last Sunday in The New Sunday Express,
under a revealing headline 'How to abuse Gods with lies and boasts,' had
requested the readers to 'Pray for India' as follows with a play on words
from the Bible: "Father, do not forgive them, for they know damn well what
they are doing."
And what they are doing is now clearly
revealed not by Benny Hinn but by the Kushalnagar Police who arrested 18
of Benny Hinn agents 16 of them from Kanyakumari at Virupakshapura JP Colony
village, 13 km from Kushalnagar a tiny village near Kushalnagar, at around
2.45 in the early hours of today. The Police team was led by Circle Inspector
Girijesh.
Tension prevails in the premises
of Kushalnagar Police Station as a group of activists led by Kodagu District
BJP President S.G. Madappa began demonstration this morning demanding action
against the Hinn's agents for alleged conversion bid.
Police have also seized the Mini-bus
(TN. 29 D 7102) of the agents from Kanyakumari and another jeep belonging
to Kempanna, the agent in JP Colony.
The trouble started last night around
11.45 when about 20 youths from the village went to the house of Kempanna
to enquire about the Kanyakumari team, who were staying in his house since
two days as they suspected something fishy about the team's activities.
Bharathi, wife of Kempanna, challenged
their interference claiming that it was her 'personal matter.' The situation
was aggravated as Bharathi threw chilli powder on the youth.
Talking to media persons, who rushed
to the spot on receiving information, Bharathi said that the Kanyakumari
team had come to their house to ferry five families, converted to Christianity,
to Bangalore to attend the 'Pray for India' congregation of Christian evangelist
Benny Hinn.
She told media persons that she
along with her husband and mother-in- law Gowramma had long back embraced
Christianity.
She said she used to conduct prayers
in the makeshift Church behind her house every Sunday and invited some
neighbours too. Five families were also converted to Christianity on her
advice as they believed in Jesus Christ.
She, however, maintained that she
did not force anyone to embrace Christianity.
Bharathi disclosed that she and
her husband visit Tellycheri every three months to attend congregation
where she befriended the Kanyakumari team.
Nagaraj, one of the youths, who
protested near Bharathi's house last night, made a startling disclosure
before the media that Bharathi tried to lure him into Christianity with
an offer of Rs. 25,000.
The protesting youths included H.T.
Sannaswamy, A.E. Kumar, B.S. Suresh, H.S. Shekhar, Shankar, Krishna, Harish
and Umesh apart from Nagaraj.
