Christians in India are prayerfully awaiting the results of India’s 18th general elections to the country’s Lower House of Parliament, now in the fifth of seven phases.More than 900 million eligible citizens are voting for 543 seats of the Lower House, also known as Lok Sabha, for a five-year term. The polls close on June 4, when ballots will be counted, and a new federal government will be declared. Two main parties are vying to control the world’s largest democracy: the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), led by incumbent Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and the Indian National Congress (INC), a moderate party seen as friendly toward minorities. Both parties have many regional allies. The BJP, with its Hindutva ideology, has ruled with a brute majority for a decade, with two five-year terms playing to the predominantly Hindu population. At the same time, the INC is a moderate party that is more tolerant of Christianity. The consensus among the Christian community is that if the BJP sweeps to power for the third consecutive time since 2014, it will lead to new challenges for India’s minority populations, especially Muslims and Christians. “We have been praying earnestly and continuously that the INC should come to power

The situation remains dire for the thousands of people whose lives have been altogether altered, especially Christians.Refugees from Manipur in a displacement in June last year. Many remain in camps without adequate provisions or sanitation. A new report on ethnic violence in India’s north-eastern Manipur state called on the international community to recognise its religious dimension. The report for the International Religious Freedom or Belief Alliance (IRFBA) published earlier this month marked a year since the outbreak of fighting between groups from the Kuki-Zo and Meitei peoples on 3-6 May 2023, which has since caused over 100 deaths. It found that “the situation remains dire for the thousands of people whose lives have been altogether altered, especially Christians” from both peoples. Many thousands remain in displacement camps, where the ethnicities are separated to avoid further clashes. The IRFBA investigation found evidence of extremists from the Hindu-majority Meitei targeting the churches of the Christian-majority Kuki-Zo, and also attacking the small number of Meitei Christians and demanding their conversion. One Meitei Christian quoted in the report said that Christianity was seen as support for the Kuki-Zo, and that Meitei Christians face persecution from their own families. “They are struggling from their family, from their relatives, and those who

Violence against Christians in India’s Chhattisgarh state recently reached marked a new level of escalation with the brutal murder of a young Christian man. On May 4, 2024, 22-year-old Kosa Kawasi was fatally attacked by a mob of community members allegedly led by his uncle and cousin. After he converted to Christianity, Kawasi’s family and village attempted to evict him from the area and seize his assets. Some family members also pressured him to revert to his former faith, reportedly sending death threats. Despite Kawasi’s reports to authorities seeking intervention, no police action was taken. The police have labeled the murder a result of a “property dispute.” Witnesses claim that is only partially true, as they say Kawasi’s uncle was motivated by religious hatred.Kawasi’s wife, Jime, was also wounded in the attack, but escaped to a local hospital where she was treated for her injuries.Five other Christian families have fled the region due to the incident.Chhattisgarh is witnessing a progression of discrimination, violence, and persecution against Christians. On April 25, 2024, villagers protested the burial of Christian convert Ishwar Korram. Hindu radicals halted the funeral procession in the street, forcing police to intervene. Despite efforts to seek justice through the authorities, the family

The month of May marks two important anniversaries for two very different activists. One was born on May 10, 1915; the other died on May 25, 1928. These individuals led very different lives over the course of the 20th century – one was an outspoken Christian minister in South Africa, the other was an anti-caste activist in Maharashtra. These men shared one key similarity: they were born into privileged families, with incredibly influential fathers who held regressive attitudes, one about race, the other about caste. And yet, through the course of their lives, both these activists defied their family legacies to challenge the injustice they saw around them.In this current moment, when hate and bigotry of all forms seem to be on the rise across the world, the examples of Beyers Naudé (1915-2004) and Shridharpant Tilak (1896-1928) are worth revisiting today. Beyers Naudé Beyers Naudé (1915-2004) was a Christian minister who became one of the most prominent white activists in South Africa’s anti-apartheid struggle. He was born in Johannesburg in 1915 into an influential Afrikaner family (descendants of primarily Dutch settlers) who were known to be “faithful members” of the Dutch Reformed Church, which later played a key role in justifying apartheid through

In normal times, it would be the sort of conspiracy theory cooked up in the “deep fakes” laboratories of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the mother of India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and alma mater of its most famous cadre, Prime Minister Narendra Modi.Core elements of these theories have abounded since independence, first peaking in 1956 in a swell so strong that even Jawaharlal Nehru, one of the founders of modern India and first prime minister, could not stop it. A senior leader of his Congress party and chief minister of the large Central provinces, Ravi Shankar Shukla, defied Nehru and set up the quasi-judicial Niyogi commission to probe the work of Christian missionaries in tribal areas.Other theories link Congress leader Sonia Gandhi with Vatican designs in sensitive border states of India, and creating enclaves of anti-national and traitorous communities. The notorious Niyogi commission, its membership carefully curated by religious right-wing members, indicted missionaries for enticing “innocent tribals” with money, and magic tricks. A “magic trick,” retired Justice Niyogi quoted, was to show how a wooden Cross floated on water while earthen idols of local gods soon dissolved, “proving the superiority of the Western god.” This insulted the native intelligence of the people

A Christian group in Assam’s Karbi Anglong district Tuesday alleged that police personnel were entering churches and collecting information, prompting the Assam police to clarify that this is part of an effort to ensure security of Christian institutions following a slew of threats in February. On Tuesday, the United Christian Forum of Diphu in Karbi Anglong wrote to the District Commissioner, alleging “unprecedented random collection of data of churches and its adherents” by police over the past week.They alleged that police personnel have been “barging into the Church premises” in Diphu town, taking photos and asking questions about the churches “without prior intimation and official instruction”. This, they said, has caused “panic and fear psychosis to the public”. Writing that “unwarranted obtrusion without proper official order” has affected the sentiments of people, the group requested that the exercise be called off.Later on Tuesday, the Superintendent of Karbi Anglong said that police have been compiling a list of all Christian institutions in the district in line with the directions from the Assam Police headquarters to ensure safety and security of the institutions. In a statement, the SP said that these instructions were issued to all Superintendents of Police after the Assam Catholic Educational Trust

Imphal (Agenzia Fides) - In Christian churches in Manipur, believers are praying "for real reconciliation and peace", while in the north-east Indian state the tensions following the inter-ethnic violence that broke out a year ago are still felt: this is what was evident above all during the two election days for the Federal Parliament (April 19th and 26th), when the polling stations were almost completely deserted. In the last few days, the Manipur Catholic Youth Organization called for a prayer and solidarity meeting at St. Joseph's Cathedral in Imphal to mark the first anniversary of the violence that broke out in the state on May 5, 2023. The Archdiocese of Imphal has invited all the faithful of the various communities as well as all people of good will from other religious communities to a time of fasting and prayer to "achieve the conversion of hearts so that true peace may flourish in Manipur", commemorating the beginning of the violence a year ago. Since then, ongoing clashes between two ethnic communities (Meitei and Kuki) have left about 200 dead and thousands injured and caused the destruction of 200 villages and 7,000 houses, 360 Christian churches or chapels and some synagogues. Currently,

An Indian communist leader has reiterated the claim that ongoing ethnic violence against indigenous Christians in Manipur is “state-sponsored.”“It was a complete failure of the federal and state governments to check violence in Manipur that started in May last year,” said Annie Raja, a senior Communist Party of India leader at the May 10 Hindi-language premiere in New Delhi of a documentary on the troubled northeastern Indian state, bordering civil war-hit Myanmar. The pro-Hindu government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi “shrewdly carried out strategies to materialize its hidden corporate agenda,” said Raja who is contesting India’s Lok Sabha (lower house) polls from southern Kerala state.“The clashes in Manipur are state-sponsored,” she told the gathering comprising students, scholars and activists on May 10. The 23-minute documentary, “Manipur — a Blot on Indian Democracy,” was produced by journalist Anto Akkara and  had its English-language premier on May 3 on the first anniversary of the start of the violence in Manipur where Kuki tribal Christians are fighting Meitei Hindus over a court proposal to grant special tribal status to Meitei people. The move, Kuki Christians say, will help Meitei people get priority in government jobs, education, and other affirmative action programs meant for indigenous people. It will

The Indian government’s response to religious violence is “insufficient and ineffective” according to a major new report.The publication, by members of the Council of Experts advising the International Religious Freedom or Belief Alliance (IRFBA) comes a year after violence began in the north-east Indian state of Manipur. More than 60,000 people have been forced from their homes and as many as 500 church buildings destroyed as religious violence continues unabated. Systematic attacks against Christian communities have resulted in over 100 deaths. The violence has disproportionately affected the Kuki and Meitei Christian communities, leaving tens of thousands without shelter, adequate food, or healthcare, and exacerbating an already volatile situation. The report says the estimated 60,000 who remain displaced, are mainly living in squalid conditions, with little access to essential services such as healthcare, sanitation, and education.The violence has also caused the destruction of vital community infrastructures like churches, which serve as community hubs, significantly disrupting normal life. The report highlights personal experiences of those who have been impacted by the clashes.Rev Dr Satkhokai Chongloi, assistant executive secretary of Kuki-Zo Christian Church Manipur Synod shared his story. He said: "All the Kuki-Zo people in Imphal were forced to flee the capital city of Manipur [as a result

India (MNN) — The U. S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF)has recommendedthat India be designated as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC). Its 2024 Annual Report released May 1, 2024 recommends adding five new countries to the 17 already on the CPC list. But the pushback from India against this designation has been swift and sharp. A spokesperson for the nation’s Ministry of External Affairs referred to the report as “propaganda,” and called USCIRF “a biased organization with a political agenda.” So what is going on? Tim Landis with FARMS International