Missionary schools, as much a part of tribal life as of urbanites', today leave in fear of parents withdrawing their wards in the wake of the sustained attacks on Christian organisations. If that happens, ``we will be forced to close down our schools. This is what the Sangh Parivar wants'', feel Christians.

Father Ashok Vaghela, who has just returned from Subir -- where Navjot High School, a residential institution for boys and girls, was torched allegedly by Bajrang Dal activists on December 25 -- says parents have already started asking whether it's safe to send their children to school and whether more attacks were apprehended.

The situation is not too different in other rural schools run by missionaries. Though police protection has been provided to Deep Darshan and the Navjot High Schools in Sanghahan, Subir and Pimperi, the feeling of insecurity runs deep. ``We feel unsafe. We cannot move but in groups lest we be attacked'', says Fr Vaghela.

Echoing similar sentiments, Sister Carmen Borges, in-charge of the Deep Darshan High School, says, ``We need to have a certain number of students on the rolls to get government recognition. If parents take their children away, recognition might be withdrawn, forcing us to close down the school''.

Does it mean that the missionaries will be forced to leave Dangs? ``No, we'll never leave this place. That'll only prove we're cowards. We haven't come here to loot this place; we came here to educate the tribals and that's what we've been doing'', asserts Sister Borges.

Adds a father on condition of anonymity, ``We haven't come here on our own. We were asked by the authorities and local organisations to set up educational institutions in Dangs''.

Referring to a letter dated June 6, 1974, he continues, ``We were requested by the then district collector and zilla panchayat president to set up schools and dispensaries in Dangs. Missionaries came here to educate the tribals, not to convert them''.

Even if the authorities are able to rein in the Bajrang Dal and the Hindu Dharmajagran Manch, the damage has already been done, they say. ``With so much tension all around, education is bound to be affected. Our attention has been diverted; we aren't able to concentrate'', says Sister Borges. ``My first concern are the HSC students, who have very little time before the examinations''.

More than anything else, however, what has hurt Sister Borges is that some Deep Darshan students, apparently instigated by the Sangh Parivar, were involved in the stone-throwing. In fact, Dashrath Pawar, one of the leading lights of the Parivar, is an alumnus of the Jivan Jyot missionary school at Pimperi.

However, Sister Borges is clear that she is not planning to take action against the students involved in the vandalism. ``They are just being used by the wily politicians'', she says.

While she has the heart to forgive the students' aberrations, she can't forget that not a single of her students' parents called her up after the violence. ``It is really strange'', she says. ``It seems the local people are ready to enjoy the benefits of missionary-run institutions but they're not willing to support us.