Christian in Uttar Pradesh have voiced grave alarm after nearly 25 believers, including pastors, were arrested in the previous week over supposed "conversion" efforts by authorities. Pastor Jitendra Singh, the general secretary of the Pastors' Association of Uttar Pradesh, told UCA News that 20 Christians were arrested on September 10 in Kanpur, three on September 13 in Azamgarh, and two on September 14 in Auraiya districts. Although the 20 Christians imprisoned in Kanpur were freed the same day, the three believers from Azamgarh had little chance. They were detained by the police after residents said they were giving cash inducements and had gathered a sizable group of men and women with the intention of converting them to Christianity. There is "little chance" that they would be released, even if they submit a conventional bail application, according to a Christian activist who preferred to remain unnamed. Pastor Singh stated that over 100 faithful, including pastors, had been detained by the state police in the previous six months on bogus charges of conversion. It has become a "matter of great concern" for Christians in the state, he claims, as there have been so many arrests in the past week of this one month alone. Not only that, various church events

India has previously rejected USCIRF reports that alleged violations of religious freedom in the country The US Commission for International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has announced that it will hold a hearing on religious freedom in India on September 20. India has previously rejected USCIRF reports that alleged violations of religious freedom in the country. Coming on the heels of two successful bilateral meetings between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Joe Biden -- the Official State Visit of the Indian leader here in June and a bilateral meeting in New Delhi in September -- USCIRF in its announcement of the meeting said the Congressional hearing is on how the US government can work with the Indian government to address violations. Fernand de Varennes, United Nations Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues, has been invited to testify before the Commission along with Tariq Ahmed, Foreign Law Specialist, Law Library of Congress; Sarah Yager, Washington Director, Human Rights Watch; Sunita Viswanath, executive director, Hindus for Human Rights and Irfan Nooruddin, Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani Professor of Indian Politics at Georgetown University. On May 2 this year, India rejected as "biased" and "motivated" a report by the USCIRF that alleged "severe violations" of religious freedom in the country. "The

MUMBAI – A Catholic priest who faced a police complaint for a social media post protesting recent anti-Christian violence in the Indian state of Manipur committed suicide on Sept. 13, with his body found hanging from a tree in a cemetery. A spokesman for the Diocese of Sagar in India announced the death of Father Anil Francis in a statement to the press Friday, saying, “We are extremely pained and sad over the death of Fr. Anil Francis, who was known for his commitment to the works given to him and dedicated to the values preached by him.” According to the statement, Francis’s death is under police investigation and the diocese is cooperating fully. It also noted that in a suicide note, Francis had requested that his body be cremated. Francis, 40 at the time of his death, was ordained to the priesthood in April 2013. The statement indicated he had arrived at the bishop’s house in Sagar on the evening of Sept. 13 for a prayer meeting the next day. The suicide came shortly after Francis had posted an image to social media depicting a woman wrapped in the colors of the Indian flag being held by two men, with a mob behind

A sharp rise in persecution of Christians in India this year was reported by New Delhi-based ecumenical human rights group, United Christian Forum in its report last Thursday. It shows 525 cases of anti-Christian violence recorded since January. The figure was 505 in the entire last year. In June, the highest 89 cases of violence against Christians were reported. The report comes at a time when India just finished as a host to G20 nations summit attended by US President Joe Biden in the national capital. Some 520 Christians have been arrested for allegedly violating stringent anti-conversion laws in various states. The report also highlights 54 cases of social discrimination against Christians such as denying access to water sources. The Forum, however, could not record happenings in sectarian violence-hit Manipur as many places in the northeastern state are still inaccessible. Nearly 200 people were killed, over 300 churches were destroyed and some 54,000 people were displaced amid clashes between predominantly Christian tribal people and Hindu-majority Meitei community. Christian groups in neighboring Nepal have decried a spate of violence against their people in the past two weeks. At least seven churches were attacked and in the latest incident on Sept. 5 in Lumbini province, two churches were vandalized. The targeting

Amid a wave of anti-Christian incidents taking place in India, the government’s National Commission for Minorities (NCM) in India has invited a national Christian network monitoring atrocities to engage in a discussion. “We are happy that the government has called us to discuss our various concerns,” A.C. Michael, national coordinator of the United Christians Forum (UCF), told CNA Sept. 14. The UCF documents atrocities and issues of discrimination against Christians. The NCM, Michael said, sent an email with the “invitation for meeting regarding issues related to [the] Christian community” on Sept. 21 at the commission office in New Delhi. The invitation also acknowledged that “your letter dated 21.4.2023 addressed to Hon’ble Prime Minister raising issues regarding the Christian community, which has been received in NCM from the Ministry of Minority Affairs.” This is not the first time that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has engaged in outreach to Christians. He visited Sacred Heart Cathedral in New Delhi on Easter Day, April 9, lighting a candle in front of the statue of the risen Christ in the cathedral. He also planted a sapling in the front garden of the cathedral in the presence of Delhi Archbishop Anil Couto, Syro Malabar-rite Archbishop Kuriakose Bharanikulangara, and Syro Malankara-rite

Christian leaders in a northern Indian state have expressed serious concern after a series of detentions and arrests over alleged “conversion” activities by police during the past week. “More than 25 Christians including pastors were detained or arrested in the past week,” said Pastor Jitendra Singh, general secretary of the Pastors’ Association of Uttar Pradesh. Some 20 Christians were detained last Sunday (Sept. 10) and released the same day in Kanpur district. Three were arrested in Azamgarh district on Sept. 13, and two were arrested in Auraiya district on Sept. 14, Pastor Singh told UCA News on Sept. 15. “It is a matter of great concern for all of us here,” he added. Uttar Pradesh reported the highest number of attacks against Christians so far this year, according to the New Delhi-based United Christian Forum (UCF), which tracks persecution of Christians across the country. The most populous state, ruled by the pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, reported 211 incidents. It is among the 11 Indian states that have enacted the draconian law that bans religious conversion through allurement, force, and coercion. In Azamgarh district, the police arrested Parmeshwar Ram, Brijesh Yadav and Poonam Yadav after local people alleged they were offering financial inducements for

A central Indian state has refused to renew the permit of a Christian orphanage, accusing it of running boys’ and girls’ hostels under one license. The Department for Women and Child Development in Madhya Pradesh refused to renew the permit of the orphanage managed by Adharshila Sansthan (Cornerstone Institution), run by a Protestant couple, in Damoh district. Madhya Pradesh is ruled by the pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “We have running this orphanage since 2005 and have complied with all legal formalities,” said a senior orphanage official. Nearly 18 children from the orphanage have been adopted by couples from foreign countries and 27 children were adopted by Indian couples from different parts of the country. Currently, the orphanage has 11 girls and five boys ready for adoption and they will be moved to other orphanages in the state. “Our institution is a government-recognized adoption center and we accommodate orphans referred to us either by the district child welfare committee or courts,” the official who did not want to be named told UCA News on Sept. 11. “The main reason cited to dismiss our application to renew the license was that we were running boys’ and girls’ hostels under one registration which is not prohibited

While India plays host to world leaders at the G20 summit, a darker reality persists within the nation. In just the first eight months of 2023, 525 incidents of violence against Christians have been recorded across 23 states, according to new data released by the United Christian Forum, a civil society organisation based in Delhi. This figure already surpasses the total number of incidents that occurred in the entire year of 2022, indicating a worrying trend for the future of minorities and democracy in India. States with violence prevalent While incidents of violence have been recorded in 23 states, with June marking the highest number at 89, followed by July with 80, and other months contributing to this grim statistic, 13 districts in in 3 states in India have emerged as dangerous zones for practicing Christianity. The three largest states in North India are witnessing the highest number of incidents against Christians, with Uttar Pradesh leading at 211 incidents, followed by Chhattisgarh with 118 and Haryana with 39 incidents. CJP is dedicated to finding and bringing to light instances of Hate Speech, so that the bigots propagating these venomous ideas can be unmasked and brought to justice. To learn more about our campaign

In Manipur, police posts and army personnel were attacked amid ongoing violence. During these incidents, a violent mob looted a large quantity of arms and ammunition from them, which are now being used to commit violence and harm people. However, the Manipur Police have also been continuously conducting raids and search operations to recover these looted weapons. Violence between the Kuki and Meitei communities has been ongoing in Manipur since May 3. It has been 91 days since the violence began, but the situation has yet to return to normal. So far, more than 160 people have lost their lives, and over one thousand people have been injured. According to the police, the mob attacked police posts at Keerenphabi and Thangalavai in Bishnupur, looting a cache of arms and ammunition. The mob also attempted to snatch weapons from a battalion of the Manipur Rifles but was unsuccessful. Subsequently, the police conducted an operation and destroyed seven illegal bunkers in the Kautruk Hill range. However, it has not been disclosed which community these bunkers belonged to. When did this incident occur? On August 3 in Manipur, a crowd of 500-600 people gathered at Phougakchao Ikhai on the border between Bishnupur and Churachandpur districts. The

On Thursday, September 7, the United Christian Forum (UCF) – a civil society organisation focused on Christian issues, based in Delhi – released a stunning statistic: there have been 525 attacks against Christians in India just in the first eight months of 2023. If this trend were to continue, this would prove to be one of the most violent and difficult years the Christian community in India has ever seen, breaking the recent record set by 2022, and 2021 before that. Vigilante violence against Muslims and Dalits has been accompanied by a sharp rise in attacks against Christians in India in recent years, often managing to escape the headlines. The numbers for this year are likely to be particularly high, given the violence in Manipur – where hundreds of churches have been destroyed in the last four months. A petition in the Supreme Court puts the figure of places of worship destroyed at 642. The Archbishop of Imphal in June said 249 churches were destroyed in just 36 hours. The UCF data does not include incidents from Manipur. “All these incidents of violence are by mob violence led by so called vigilante groups of particular faith who are allegedly receiving support from people in power,” the