State lawmakers in India are seeking to curtail evangelism with a ban on “magical healing” that could penalize Christians who offer prayer or any “non-scientific” practices to comfort people who are sick. Last month, the northeastern state of Assam introduced the bill, which Christian leaders say unfairly targets their community’s custom of praying for the sick. Though church healing meetings in India have drawn people to Christ, local Christians insist that prayer is a legitimate, universal spiritual practice and not an unethical tool for conversion, as Hindu nationalists claimed. The proposed ban, which passed the 126-member state assembly on February 26, states that:No person shall take any part in healing practices and magical healing propagation for treatment of any diseases, any disorder or any condition relating to the health of a person (relating to human body) directly or indirectly giving a false impression of treatment to cure diseases, pain or trouble to the human health. Any first-time offender can face one to three years in prison, a fine of 50,000 rupees (about $600 USD), or both. A subsequent conviction may result in up to five years’ imprisonment and/or a fine of 100,000 rupees (about $1,200 USD). The bill must be ratified by the president of India

ASSAM: United Christian Forum Golaghat has submitted a memorandum to Hon’ble Governor of Assam, Gulab Chand Kataria, demanding an alarming increase in targeted attacks against the Christians and their organizations in Assam. UCF Golaghat which is led by President Jidan Aind and Secretary Leander Toppo, stressed the urgent need for government intervention to bring down the grievances faced by the Christian community. The memoramdum described tragedies, including demands by some groups to remove ethnic Christians from the scheduled tribes, threats to Christian schools to remove religious symbols, and a nun a recent bus removal for mocking his faith raised concerns about safety and religious freedom. As such in recent times there has been apprehension over the proposed Assam Medical (Prevention of Evil) Practices Bill 2024, and Christians fear that they may be misinterpreted and victimized targeting their religious practices. UCF Golaghat stressed the importance of ensuring that the legislature does not violate the constitutional rights of religious minorities. Showing grave concern over these developments, UCF Golaghat urged the government to take decisive action to curb anti-Christian activities and ensure prompt response by civilian police. They also called for a rethink of the use of controversial words in constitutional law to prevent misinterpretations that could further aggravate the problems. Drawing the attention

The local Christian community, who is trying to grapple with the violent incident, has taken to the public forum X to fervently appeal to the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister for swift and resolute action against the perpetrators. The plea underscores the gravity of the situation and seeks justice for the deliberate assault on their place of worship. Responding to the matter, the Ramanagara Town police have officially registered a case and have promised an investigation in the matter. A month ago, on January 24th, a Christian couple was attacked in the state in Bijapur. The couple was reportedly physically assaulted by a mob of people associated with Hindutva groups. The mob accused the couple of engaging in forced religious conversion. Furthermore, the assault did not stop there, as per reports by Siasat News, right-wing groups even lead a campaign against the couple on various social media platforms. Vijayalakshmi, in her complaint, asserted that it was her constitutional right to practise Christianity. She highlighted that her family has been facing persistent harassment on the basis of religion. They have also been getting abusive comments and the sudden cancellation of crucial government documents such as the Aadhaar card. The report details that this is not an isolated

The leader of a Hindu group in northeastern Assam state plans legal action against Church-run schools in the state after they ignored a deadline to remove Christian symbols from school premises.Satya Ranjan Borah, who heads the Kutumba Surakshya Parishad (family safety council), told UCA News that his preparations are complete to file a case in the high court, the state's top court. "I have adequate documents to support my demand," he told UCA News on March 7.Borah's council had set a 15-day deadline on Feb. 7 for all Christian schools to remove all Christian symbols such as crosses and statues from school premises and classrooms. The Feb. 7 press meeting, addressed by 10 other right-wing outfits, also demanded priests and nuns to come to schools in civil dress rather than in their religious dress.Borah publicly made these demands and warned of dire consequences in case of failure. The government in the state is run by the pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.“I am not against Jesus Christ or Christianity. But my demand is to free missionary schools from religious symbols of all forms,” Borah told UCA News on March 7. "We are against all forms of religious symbols in any school premises in the state," he

A forum of lay Catholics has urged the head of a state government in northeast India to protect minority Christians and tribal people who are being threatened and harassed by hardline Hindu groups. “We cannot keep silent and remain mute spectators when our community is in pain,” John S. Shilshi, founder member of the North East Catholic Research Forum (NECRF), told UCA News on March 6.In a memorandum handed over to Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on March 3, the NECRF expressed disappointment that the state administration failed to address the community's grievances. “The chief minister is the guardian of all people irrespective of their caste, creed, and religion,” it reminded him.Shilshi said the memorandum highlighted the ultimatum given by a Hindu group, Kutumbha Surakshya Parishad (family protection council), to Christian schools in Assam to rid themselves of all Christian symbols. The group’s president Satya Ranjan Borah on Feb. 7 also threatened priests and nuns to discontinue wearing cassocks and habits on school campuses and demanded that churches located within educational complexes be removed. A poster in Assamese, the state's official language, came up near a Christian school on Feb. 23. “This is a final warning to stop using schools as a religious institution. Remove Jesus

It appears Satya Ranjan Borah does not want to miss checking any boxes in his checklist of hardline Hindutva objectives. Hindutva leader from Assam, Satya Ranjan Borah, has issued a warning about taking to the streets in protest against Christian missionary institutions alleging them to use soft targets to convert people. At a recent press conference, the right-wing leader claimed christian missionary institutions had not notified religious institutions and asked them to prove if he is wrong.Borah asserted that none of the schools in Assam have 'namghar' then what is the point of having a church in a school? "They (Christian missionaries) although are not converting people directly are using soft-target based schemes, be it seeing Jesus Christ in the morning till the end of the day

After passing of 15-day deadline given to Christian missionary schools for the removal of idols of Jesus Christ, Mother Mary and the Cross, several Hindu groups led by Kutumba Surakshy Parishad have decided to move the Gauhati High Court against Christian missionaries for their anti-India activities and practices of exclusive Christianity in missionary schools and other educational institutions across the state. “The group of Sanatan Hindu organizations have decided to move to Gauhati High Court and to file a PIL in this connection to remove the religious practice and religious installations from the school campus,” , Kutumba Surakshya Parishad president Satya Ranjan Borah said while addressing a press conference at Guwahati Press Club here on Tuesday. The Hindu organisations have demanded the removal of the idols of Jesus Christ and Mother Mary and the Cross from the missionary schools.The demand came following an incident at a missionary school- Calvary English School at Balipara in Sonitpur district in which a 10-year-old child was physically and mentally assaulted for uttering ‘Jai Sri Ram’ while opening a book in the classroom. The incident took place on February 5. “This incident has violated the Juvenile Justice Act, Article 14,15 of the Constitution of India; New Education Policy

The government in India’s strife-torn Manipur has admitted for the first time that 219 persons have been killed in the ethnic violence that broke out nearly 10 months ago in the northeastern state.Governor Anusuiya Uikey disclosed the figures during her address to the state legislative assembly on Feb. 28. Most of the victims are tribal Christians. The state's police have registered close to 10,000 cases in connection with the sectarian violence and arrested 187,143 people as a preventive measure, Uikey said.Uikey told the assembly that compensation would be given to the families of deceased persons and expressed sympathies with them. Manipur, bordering civil war-hit Myanmar, has witnessed unprecedented violence since May 3 last year between Kuki tribal Christians and the Meitei Hindu community.But Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not visited the state, although its government is run by his pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party.The sectarian strife started over granting tribal status to the influential Meiteis that would guarantee them reservation quotas in education and government jobs under India’s affirmative action. Christians who make up nearly 41 percent of Manipur’s 3.2 million population are against granting reservation quotas to the Meiteis who form a majority of the state's 53 percent Hindus. The initial days, in July last year, saw two indigenous Christian women being

An altercation broke out between the two communities over an alleged attempt of illegal conversion in the Padmnabhpur area of the Durg district of Chhattisgarh, the incident occurred on Sunday morning, March 3 where members of both communities indulged in a verbal which later turned violent over alleged attempt of conversion in Oriya Basti near Raipur Naka. According to the reports, the members of the Bajrang Dal had received information about a prayer meeting called in a Church in the Oriya Basti on Sunday, following which they reached the spot and lodged their protest against the said gathering, leading to an altercation with the people of the Christian community. The workers of Bajrang Dal alleged that reports of illegal conversion in the name of prayer meetings through lure and inducement have been coming to them from the said region, hence, upon receiving information about such a gathering, they reached the spot and lodged their protest against the said meeting. Though soon after the workers of Bajrang Dal started protesting against the gathering, they got involved in a scuffle with the members inside the Church leading to a violent altercation that resulted in minor injuries to a few people from both sides. Meanwhile, upon receiving

In another incident of luring people to follow Christianity while spreading fallacy about the Sanatan Dharma reported from Chhattisgarh, as many as five people, including women, have been arrested by the police after members of a Hindu outfit lodged their strong protest over the incident in the Korea district of Chhattisgarh. The incident pertains to the Indira Aawas colony of Chhindad locality under the Churcha police station limits of Korea district, where members of the Christian community were allegedly involved in inciting people to follow Christianity through inducement on Wednesday evening, February 28. Though, the information of such a gathering soon reached the locals’ members associated with the Dharm Jagran, who lodged a strong opposition to the gathering and subsequently filed a police complaint on the next day, following which the accused were nabbed by the police. According to the details of the complaint filed by Pradeep Patwa, a resident of Cherwapara village, members of the Christian community, including pastor Dharamsai Tirkey, had gathered in the house of one of his neighbor, Vijay Sarthi, where they were inciting others to embrace and practice Christianity through the means of fallacy on Wednesday evening. The complainant has alleged that the pastor and his associates, while propagating the benefits of embracing Christianity, were portraying the Hindu god,