News from India
Christians Increasingly Targeted in BJP-Controlled Odisha
Just six months after the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power in tribal-dominated Odisha state, the number of attacks against Christians has spiked.
Police Watch as Mob Attacks 14 Christians in Chhattisgarh
As police officers watched, hundreds of people attacked 14 Christians on Oct. 30 in Chhattisgarh, India, after they defied orders to abandon their Christian faith and harvested crops from a communal farm.
High Court Calls for Regulation of Christian Institutions in India
The High Court of Tamil Nadu made a significant statement on Oct. 23, saying there is a need for Christian institutions to be regulated by a statutory government endowment body, like Hindu and Muslim institutions.
Hindu Organizations Attempt to Stop Two Large Christian Gatherings
Two Hindu nationalist organizations are trying to stop two large public Christian conventions scheduled to take place in different provinces of the Central Indian state of Chhattisgarh.
80-Mile-Long Human Chain Forms to Protest Politician’s Anti-Christian Remarks
Christians in Chhattisgarh formed an 80-mile-long human chain to protest inaction against a member of the legislative assembly who made derogatory remarks about Jesus and conversions to Christianity in a public speech.
U.S. Government Commission Finds Worsening Persecution in India Amid Elections
A special mid-year report from the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released last week found that persecution in India has continued to worsen throughout 2024, with government actions and mob violence combining to restrict the rights of religious minorities across the country.
11 Female Evangelists Arrested on False Charges of Forced Conversions
Eleven Christian women evangelists from Hyderabad, along with seven other local Christian men and women, were arrested and arraigned on false charges of trying to forcefully convert school children in Bhagwanpur, Bihar. Police also impounded three cars used by the evangelists.
Pastor Found Guilty of Forced Conversions in India
Despite being granted bail, a pastor working for a missionary organization in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh was convicted on Wednesday on charges of unlawful conversions and sentenced to five years in prison.