Persecution of Christians in India

• Instances of violence and persecution in Andhra Pradesh include a mob attack on a church service celebrating Christmas and the mysterious disappearances and deaths of Christian ministers. 

•  The state has seen several attacks on churches and pastors, with incidents of mob violence leading to the destruction of multiple churches 

•  The state has also witnessed targeted attacks on pastors, with the body of a missing pastor found bearing marks suggestive of an acid attack.

•  The mysterious deaths of Christian ministers and the discovery of their bodies wrapped in jute bags outside the state capital, Hyderabad, indicate a grave situation of violence and targeted attacks on the Christian community 

A total of 161 incidents of violence against Christians have been reported from January through March 15 via the helpline of the New Delhi-based civil society organization, which focuses on Christians in India. Of this number, 47 incidents of violence and discrimination were reported from Chhattisgarh. 

Since the beginning of May, ethnic and religious violence in Manipur, a state in northeast India, has resulted in the deaths of at least 142 people, the destruction of over 300 churches and hundreds of villages, and one of the largest violence-driven internal displacements in recent Indian history. A fact-finding team that visited earlier this month reported that the clashes were “state-sponsored,” and the violence has uprooted more than 70,000 people from their homes and forced them to seek shelter elsewhere. 

Extremists Not Questioned Despite Viral Video Probe That Reveals Complicity in Gangrape

Hindu fundamentalists in  Orissa objected to all missionary activity, and they were successful in passing a state law that prohibited religious conversions.  

On January 22, 1999, Graham Staines and his two sons ( Missionary Family from Australia) were burned alive while they were sleeping in their station wagon. 

• Twelve of India’s 28 states have now passed anti-conversion laws, and momentum is building to impose a national law across the whole of India. This would limit the freedom of religious minorities, including Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, and Sikhs, from sharing their faith.
• Police are arresting Christians under a law that is intended to prevent conversion by force, but in practise prevents any Christians from sharing their faith – even though their right to do so is enshrined in the Indian constitution.
• UCA news report that nearly 400 Christians have been arrested in the state of Uttar Pradesh since the law was passed three years ago. They say most of the 398 Christians arrested are Protestant pastors and church members.

Rise in Attacks on Christians in India

USCIRF - 2023 Annual report - India Chapter.

USCIRF - 2024 Annual Report India Chapter