Young Christian Missionary and Father-of-Four Brutally Murdered by Maoist Group in India
Christian missionary Munshi Dev Tado and his family
A Christian missionary and father-of-four was brutally murdered by a Maoist group in India angered by his mission work amid a rise in religious persecution across the country.
Morning Star News reports that on July 10, a Maoist group in the Gadchiroli district of India’s Maharashtra state shot and killed Munshi Dev Tado, a 28-year-old Christian convert and father of four children, ages 6, 5, 4 and 1.
Tado’s wife, Jaini Munshi Tado, told the outlet that her husband was leading worship on his property when three armed men and three women interrupted the service.
“They shook hands with him at first, then took him by his hand and, after few steps, they tied his hands at his back with a rope,” she said. “I, my father-in-law and brother-in-law followed after them, pleading and enquiring as to why they are taking him. They said they just want to talk to him and that we need not worry, they will send him back in a little while.”
“Hardly five to seven minutes later, we heard a gunshot,” she said. “We immediately ran in the direction only to find the body of my husband in the pool of his blood, and the Maoists had gone. I wept bitterly, my husband was gone.”
After killing the pastor, the Maoists left a note in Tado’s pocket claiming he was a police informant. However, when police arrived to investigate, they said Tado was not an informer for them and that they did not even know him.
According to Asia News, the pastor and his family began to suffer persecution after leaving the Maoist Naxalite movement and converting to Christianity several years ago. Villagers angered by his conversion attacked Tado’s home and threatened to kill his family on several occasions.
