Unidentified attackers beat up a group of Christians with iron rods in the Hindu nationalist-ruled central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh injuring 12, police said on Sunday. The attack took place on Saturday in the state capital Bhopal, where some 20 Christians had gathered for prayers at a missionary institution, police said. The attackers stormed the building, shouting anti-Christian slogans, and beat those at prayers with iron rods and sticks, Bhopal police chief Anant Kumar Singh said. “Some Christians, including a priest and a child, have been injured,” said Singh. “The exact cause of the feud is being investigated.” Two seriously injured were in hospital, he added. The attack was condemned by local Hindu leader Devendra Rawat though he charged Christians in the area with attempting to convert poor and illiterate Hindus by offering them material incentives. Christian groups in Bhopal say rightwing Hindus systematically target members of their community. “Christians have been under pressure in Madhya Pradesh for long and such atrocities have increased under the rightwing BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) rule,” said Anil Martin, general secretary of the state’s Christian Association.