India Tightens Christmas Security After Christians Attacked
Christians and others in India celebrated Christmas despite fears of an anti-Christian backlash in some parts of the predominantly Hindu country.
India
Christians in India Arrested, Beaten by Hindu Extremists After Praying for Sick Man
Seven Christians in India have been booked on charges of hurting religious feelings after Hindu extremists savagely beat them when they gathered to pray for a sick man at his home, sources said.
Hindu Extremists Beat Pastors, Stop Gospel Event in India
Berating and slapping two pastors into signing an apology letter before police, Hindu extremists stopped a planned three-day gospel meeting in Chhattisgarh state, India minutes before it was to begin, sources said.
Officials, Police in Tamil Nadu State, India Halt Worship in 10 Churches
Officials and police in Tamil Nadu state, India, have ordered 10 churches to discontinue worship services, sources said.
Violence Against Christians Increases as Elections Draw Close in India’s Karnataka State
On September 17, 2017, suspected Hindu radicals attacked an Assembly of God church in India’s Karnataka state. After the attack, church attendance has plummeted as Christians in the area fear another attack. It is not surprising that attacks are increasing in Karnataka as state elections are scheduled to occur early next year. Hindu hardline groups want to silence Christians and ensure that they are unable to practice their faith.
Pastor in India Perseveres amid Persecution by Hindu Extremists
A band of Hindu extremists who had snuck into a house-church service beat a pastor with steel rods and sticks, one of them yelling that they would stop if he shouted, ‘Hail, Lord Ram [Jai Sri Ram]!’
Christian Persecution in India Hits Record High in First Half of 2017
As reported earlier this year, the first quarter of 2017 saw 248 persecution incidents wherein Christians were harassed, threatened or attacked for their faith in India. More recent records indicate the number of incidents in first six months of 2017 is now up to 410 incidents. This represents an enormous increase in persecution as there were only 441 incidents reported in 2016 for the entire year.
State Government in India Passes Anti-Conversion Bill Despite Widespread Opposition
International Christian Concern (ICC) has learned that the Jharkhand Assembly, a state legislative body in northeastern India, passed the Jharkhand Freedom of Religion Bill-2017, also known as ‘Jharkhand Dharma Swatantra Adhiniyam,’ on Saturday, August 12. The bill will now be sent to the governor, following whose approval it would go to the president for final assent. The bill was passed by the BJP-led government despite significant opposition from religious groups, civil society, and the tribal groups across Jharkhand.
Police Disingenuous in Hindu Extremist Assault on Pastors in Tamil Nadu, India, Sources Say
Hard-line Hindus used steel rods and a butcher’s knife to attack a father-son pastoral team in Tamil Nadu state, India, injuring the elder clergyman, sources said.
Calling Worship ‘Unlawful Assembly,’ Police in Uttar Pradesh, India, Arrest Six Christians
Berating and slapping a pastor for reading the Bible instead of Hindu texts, police in Uttar Pradesh state, India last month detained six Christians under “unlawful assembly” laws for worshiping together, sources said.
Pastor in Punjab State, India Shot Dead
A pastor in northern India’s Punjab state was shot dead in front of his church premises two months after Hindu extremists took offense at a gospel event celebrating his church’s 25th anniversary, sources said.
India: Man beaten for defending Christian cemetery
Last month in Punjab state, India, a Christian was severely beaten after he protested the desecration of a Christian graveyard by local Hindus.
India: Christian tortured for his faith
A Christian villager was tortured for his faith last month in Chhattisgarh state.
India: Pastor, Christians harrassed
The arrest of a pastor, his wife and another church member in Satna, India, on May 22 symbolically fell on the two-year anniversary of Narendra Modi’s oppressive Hindu nationalist government.
India: Christian arrested for spreading the Gospel
Police arrested a Christian in Chhattisgarh, India, for distributing brochures printed with excerpts from the Gospel.
India: Hindus set Christian homes afire
After concluding that their Hindu deities were angry, villagers in Chhattisgarh state drove some newly converted Christians from their homes and then set the buildings afire.
India: Hindu’s torture Christian convert
Police declined to take any action against the Hindus who tortured a Christian in India’s Uttar Pradesh state last month and then left him for dead.
India: Attacks continue despite Congressional letter
Despite having received a letter last month from the U.S. Congress requesting that India’s prime minister condemn the sectarian attacks on his nation’s religious minorities, PM Narendra Modi remains unmoved.
India: Congregation attacked, church vandalized
A church in India’s Chhattisgarh state was attacked by Hindu nationalists during the March 6 Sunday service.
Persecution in India gets congressional response
A bipartisan congressional letter was sent last week to Prime Minister Modi requesting that he strongly condemn the persecution of India’s religious minorities and to uphold the rule of law.