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

A mob of 200 people attacked a church and injured 20+ Christians over a road dispute in Telangana, India.At least 22 Christians in India injured after a 200-strong mob attacked a church are still in shock after their ordeal. Two children were among those injured in the mob violence in the southern state of Telangana. The violence occurred over a land dispute, in which attackers shouted, “Jai Shri Ram”, meaning ‘Hail Lord Ram’, – a chant which has become a hallmark of Hindu nationalists. “The Christians have not recovered from their shock,” shares Nitish*, a local believer who witnessed the attack. “The injured victims are recovering while others are afraid of what is going to happen next.” Attack over road dispute. The clash started when believers at the church were told that their building would be demolished for a road expansion. Tensions had arisen after a group of villagers demanded the road to be widened eight feet into the compound of the Methodist Church in the Janwada village area of Rangareddy district. The Christians protested, and that’s when things turned violent. “The argument became strong, and suddenly around 200 people barged into the church with hockey sticks, stones and wooden sticks,” shares Nitish. “When

In the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, Father Dominic Pinto of the Lucknow diocese was arrested Feb. 5 along with six Protestants on charges of trying to convert poor Dalits, or “untouchables,” from Hinduism to Christianity “Finally, I am able to give you good news. The District Judge has granted bail to Father Dominic and all those who were arrested with him. Praise the Lord,” said Bishop Gerald John Mathias of Lucknow, the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. “I thank you sincerely for your constant prayers and sacrifices for this intention. So many people including bishops, priests, sisters, lay faithful, and youth have been praying. God has finally heard our prayers,” the bishop said. The diocese has over 22 million people, but the Catholic population is only about 8,200. Both the city and state are ruled by the Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which often accuses Christians of trying to convert Hindus. Pinto is the director of the Navintha pastoral center of the Lucknow diocese, which he had agreed to make available to a group called Khrist Bhakts, or “followers of Christ,” composed of Hindus, Muslims and members of other religions who nevertheless find inspiration in Christ and pray

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