A Catholic bishop in Uttar Pradesh state on March 12 expressed relief after a court granted bail to a Catholic and 10 Protestants. “Finally, I am able to give you good news. The District Judge [in Barabanki] has granted bail to Father Dominic [Pinto] and all those who were arrested with him. Praise the Lord,” says a message from Bishop Gerald John Mathias of Lucknow. The 11 were in judicial custody since February 6, a day after they were arrested for allegedly trying to convert poor Hindus in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Bishop Mathias thanked all those who prayed and made sacrifices for the bail. “So many people including bishops, priests, sisters, lay faithful, and youth have been praying. God has finally heard our prayers,” he added. Besides Father Pinto, the court granted bail to Anil, Surju Prasad Gautam, Pawan Kumar, Sunil Pasi, Ghanshyam Gautam, Surendra Paswan, Rahul Paswan, Ramcharan Rawat, Dharmendra Kori and Suraj Gautham. On February 5, the police in Barabanki district arrested Father Pinto, 41, and others after some Hindu hardliners complained that they had conducted a mass religious conversion gathering at Navintha, the pastoral center of the Lucknow diocese. The following day, the Chief Judicial

Church leaders on March 29 slammed the attacks on Christian communities in Manipur and North India, and called for a united stand against divisive forces that seek to terrorise people in the name of religion and race. Archbishop Thomas J. Netto of the Latin Archdiocese of Thiruvananthapuram underscored the need to fight and defeat narrow-minded approaches expressed through legislations such as the Citizenship (Amendment) Act. Dark forces are unleashing violence upon Christians in Manipur and North India, yet there is no effective intervention on the part of the authorities, he said. Archbishop Netto was addressing the faithful after a Way of the Cross procession jointly organised by Christian denominations in State capital Thiruvananthapuram as part of the Good Friday observance.Church leaders have come out strongly against the attacks on Christians at a time when election campaigns in Kerala have picked up pace in the run-up to the April 26 Lok Sabha election. Archbishop Netto said the need to adopt a strong stance against such disruptive forces should be clearly understood. “We should make good use of the opportunity to clearly express our opinion,” he said. He also urged Christian denominations to stand united to fight for minority rights, and the freedoms of religion and expression

The US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has voiced concern over the Indian government’s notification of rules to implement the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), saying no one should be denied citizenship based on religion or belief. Rules for implementation of the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA) were notified earlier this month, paving the way for granting citizenship to undocumented non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan.“The problematic CAA establishes a religious requirement for asylum seekers in India fleeing neighbouring countries,” USCIRF Commissioner Stephen Schneck said in a statement Monday. Schneck said that while CAA provides a fast track to citizenship for Hindus, Parsis, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains and Christians, the law explicitly excludes Muslims.While critics have questioned the government over the exclusion of Muslims from the Act, India has strongly defended its move. “The CAA is about giving citizenship, not about taking away citizenship. It addresses the issue of statelessness, provides human dignity and supports human rights,” External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Radhir Jaiswal said recently, asserting that the law is an internal matter of India. India in the past has also dismissed USCIRF’s locus standi to comment on India’s human rights record.In his statement, Schneck said, “If the law were truly aimed at protecting persecuted

KANDHAMAL, India: In India’s Kandhamal district, the scars of brutal attacks on Christians 16 years ago still linger, evoking fear and uncertainty among the minority community. As the country braces for upcoming elections with Prime Minister Narendra Modi expected to secure another term, many Christians worry about the resurgence of violence and persecution. The 2008 attacks, triggered by the murder of a Hindu priest, left a devastating impact, with mobs targeting Christians and leaving scores dead. Survivors like Deepti recall the horrors of that time, including incidents of gang rape and widespread sexual assault. Last year, the Vatican initiated the beatification process for 35 individuals killed in the violence, offering a glimmer of hope for the community. However, for many, the trauma persists, overshadowing any sense of closure or justice. The looming elections add to the apprehension, especially amid concerns of rising Hindu nationalism and the BJP’s alleged agenda to convert India into a Hindu state. Reports of attacks against Christians across the country further fuel anxiety, with memories of past atrocities still fresh. Despite reassurances from political leaders, including Modi, many Christians remain wary, fearing a repeat of past violence. The recent inauguration of a temple in Ayodhya, a site marked by historical

A Christian couple in central India have not seen their two young children for more than a month after an attack by followers of traditional tribal religion drove them from their village for refusing to recant their faith. Aayatu Ram Podiyami, 35, was assaulted twice in Gupanpal village, Sukma District, 31 miles from the Sukma city in Chhattisgarh state, for refusing to recant his Christian faith.Aayatu Podiyami managed to escape into the jungle on both occasions, but his father, Mangu Ram Podiyami, “is not young and swift” and was unable to outrun the second assault.The mob stopped beating him after he passed out, and his assailants thought he was dead,” Aayatu Podiyami said. He and his wife and father have not returned home since taking refuge at a secure place on Feb. 12.The couple has two daughters, ages 7 and 4. Aayatu Podiyami is the sole surviving son among three siblings, and also remaining at his house are his mother, younger brother’s widow and child, and his older brother’s son. “I cannot go back home to see my children,” Aayatu Podiyami told Morning Star News. “Our assailants are on the watch, eyeing on our house, waiting for me to return. God is our only hope. Please

New Delhi, Mar 21 (EFE).- There have been more than 160 cases of attacks on Christians so far this year in India, while 122 have been arrested on charges of religious conversion, a Christian rights advocacy group said Thursday. “The first 75 days of 2024 has seen a large-scale erosion of basic fundamental rights and protection of Indian Christians,” the United Christian Forum (UCF) said in a statement.Between Jan. 1 and Mar. 15, “161 incidents of violence against Christians were reported on the UCF toll-free helpline number,” the group said. UCF said 70 cases were reported in January, 62 in February, and another 29 in the first 15 days of March.The central state of Chhattisgarh saw the highest number of attacks, with 47 cases.Christians were denied access to public bore wells and were stopped from performing burial rituals according to their faith, the forum said.The northern state of Uttar Pradesh, the most populous in India, recorded the second-highest number of violent incidents with 36 cases. “There is clear evidence of state-sponsored harassment of Christians in this state as the police file false allegations of conversion against the pastors, even for praying at birthday parties and other social gatherings.”Additionally, 122 Christians were arrested across

On February 13, 2024, a mob of at least 150 Hindu extremists attacked a small Methodist church in the village of Janwada, located in Telangana state in central India. Church members were brutally beaten with stones, weapons, and large bamboo sticks while the doors and roof of the church were also damaged. The attackers chanted Hindu nationalist slogans during the assault as they vandalized the building, broke chairs and destroyed Christian symbols. “We deeply grieve that the attackers did not even spare women and children,” said Reverend Naveen Solomon, pastor of the Janwada Methodist Church. “Three of our children who had come to the church for a music lesson were also beaten up and received injuries. A girl of 12 received injuries on her face from a stone.” Instead of seeking justice against the attackers, local police registered a case against 27 of the Christians present. Six were arrested and 21 received anticipatory bail, avoiding jail time. The arrested Christians were still in prison as of February 26.“Our believers were attacked and injured and our Church was broken and desecrated,” said Solomon. “Yet the police filed a case against us, putting charges as grave as attempted murder, even though there is not a

A tribal Christian forum in the strife-torn northeast Indian state of Manipur has condemned the attacks on its office and its spokesperson in two separate incidents.The attackers "destroyed computers and documents" at the office of the Indigenous Tribal Leader’s Forum (ITLF) in Churachandpur district on March 17 night,  a church leader who did not want to be named told UCA News on March 19. In another incident on the same night some people attacked the home of ITLF spokesperson Pu Ginza Vualzong in an attempt to kill him, the organization said in the March 18 statement.The tribal forum represents ethnic Christians in the state.The district, a stronghold of Kuki-Zo tribal Christians, has been tense since ethnic violence broke out in Manipur 10 months ago. The ITLF statement condemned the attacks.“The ITLF will not tolerate these heinous acts and won’t stop until the alleged offenders come out and settle the matter as soon as possible," it said in the statement.The Zomi Student Federation (ZSF), the students' arm of the indigenous Zomi community, condemned the violent act in the Churachandpur district, which is regarded as a stronghold of tribal Christians. “ZSF will not remain silent if the same act of aggression or invasion by one or more persons, groups, associations or

Four Christian-run institutions in the Uttar Pradesh town of Fatehpur face criminal cases for alleged forcible conversion of Hindus, with over 200 accused, many arrested and imprisoned, under UP’s three- year-old anti-conversion law. An investigation by Article 14 reveals similar statements in four FIRs over nine months, police cases or raids on Christian institutions, based on illegal third-party or anonymous complaints. Simultaneously, the Union government acted against the finances of one of these four institutions. On 14 April 2022, a warm summer’s day, pastor A* was at home on the premises of Broadwell Christian Hospital in Fatehpur when he received a panicked phone call.The call came from the 118-year-old Evangelical Church of India, located barely 500 m away in the Hariharganj locality of this eastern UP town. At the church, pastor Vijay Masih was about to finish up a daily prayer service, when all hell broke loose. Around 55 Christians had gathered inside the church that day to commemorate Maundy Thursday—a holy day on the Christian calendar, marking the last supper of Jesus Christ with his disciples. The prayer service was scheduled from 6 p.m. to 7.30 p.m.At 7 p.m., around 200–250 people affiliated with the Hindu right-wing group Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), stormed

A trial court in Madhya Pradesh's Sagar district on March 11 sentenced Ramesh Babulal Masih and his wife, Sakhi Ramesh Masih, to two years in jail and imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 (US$603) under the state's Freedom of Religion Act 2021.The complainant Abhishek, a close relative of Sakhi, had accused the couple of offering him a job of 20,000 rupees monthly salary, in case he converted to Christianity. The alleged incident took place in October 2021. Though the couple denied the charges the court found them guilty.“It is a court order and we have to respect it. At the same time, it is not a final order. The couple can challenge it in the high court, the top court in the state,” Daniel John, a Catholic leader based in Madhya Pradesh capital Bhopal, said on March 15. “The court convicted them merely based on the allegation of attempt to convert,” he told UCA News. “It is very easy for anyone to level such complaints.”The sweeping anti-conversion law, enacted by the ruling pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Madhya Pradesh, criminalizes religious conversion through misrepresentation, use of threat or force, fraud, undue influence, coercion, and allurement, among others. “The