Earlier, a letter signed by Manning had denied Hindus living in PNG permission to hold Durga Puja celebrations saying idol worshipping is morally inappropriate and against Christian values.
The concept of inculturation is deeply enshrined in Christianity. It “denotes the presentation and re-expression of the Gospel in forms and terms proper to a culture.”
BLP MLA Gulihatti Chandrashekhar explained that the missionaries primarily target the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe community and if any Hindu group or individuals try to prevent it, they are trapped in false cases of rape and caste atrocity.