Pastor rammed by rickshaw driver in India

Pastor rammed by rickshaw driver in India

KOTTAYAM, Kerala, India — Pastor Paul Ciniraj, a Christian convert from Islam, is still recovering from what he believes was a murder attempt in Kottayam district, in the southern state of Kerala, India. Ciniraj is the head of Salem Voice Ministries, which runs orphanages, village schools and adult literacy centers in Kerala. He also pastors a church.

On March 16, Ciniraj was riding his motorbike past the office of the district collector in Kottayam when a motorized rickshaw rammed into him, fracturing his knee. Though police suspected an attempted murder, they have not visited him again or arrested the rickshaw driver. Three days after the incident, while Ciniraj was still in the hospital, two men carrying weapons attempted to break into his house, apparently intending to attack his family.