Recent Incidents of Persecution

Tamil Nadu, India, September 30 (CDN) — Police detained evangelist V.K. Williams and seven other Christians after Hindu extremists disrupted their evangelistic meeting on Sept. 29 in Theni, according to the Global Council of Indian Christians. The extremists filed a complaint against the Christians of “forceful conversion” and pressured police to arrest them, and officers took the eight Christians to the station for questioning. At press time, area Christian leaders were trying to free them.

West Bengal – On Sept. 26 in Purulia, Hindu extremists stopped a worship service and dragged Christians out, saying no more prayer or worship should take place in the village. A source in Kolkata reported that the extremists were threatening to kill the Christians if they did not convert to Hinduism. The Christians reported the matter to the Kenda Police Station. Officers summoned both parties to the police station, but the extremists threatened to kill the Christians if they went.

Karnataka – Hindu extremists belonging to the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Bajrang Dal attacked Gnanodya Church at Yellapura, Karwar district, on Sept. 26. The All India Christian Council reported that the assailants broke into a church worship service after having filed a complaint against Pastor Shiva Ram of “forcible conversions.” In the presence of the police, the attackers started to vandalize the church, pulling down calendars and breaking furniture. Church members said their pastor was targeted because of his social service works. Police took the pastor into custody and jailed him.

Karnataka – Karnataka police on Sept. 26 arrested a Pentecostal pastor, Shivanda Siddi, on false charges of “forceful conversions” in Mundgod. The Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) reported that at about 11 a.m. five Hindu extremists from the Bajrang Dal stormed the church building while Christians were praying and began arguing with the pastor. They beat him, stripped him of his clothes and took Bibles from those present. The extremists later telephoned police in Yellapur, about three kilometers away (less than two miles), and an inspector arrived and took the pastor, seven women and two young children to the police station. The extremists continued to threaten the Christians in front of police, who watched in silence. With GCIC intervention, police released the women and children without charges, but Pastor Siddi was charged with “defiling a place of worship with intent to insult the religion of any class.” He was put in Uttar Kananda’s Sirsi prison.

Karnataka – On Sept. 19 in Santhemarnalli, police led by Inspector Madhava Swamy threatened a pastor with harm if he did not stop alleged “forceful conversion” activities. The All India Christian Council reported that police threatened Pastor Mhades of Good Shepherd Community Church after Hindu extremists filed the complaint against him. Police barged into his church, questioned him and told him that they would take action against him if he did not stop trying to convert people. Area Christian leaders claimed that there was no case of forceful conversion, and that Christians were only conducting their regular worship services.

Andhra Pradesh – Police on Sept. 17 arrested a Christian convert from Islam, Sheik Magbool, after Muslim extremists filed a complaint against him of uttering derogatory remarks against the prophet of Islam, Muhammad, in Kurnool. A source reported that Maqbool organized a three-day, open air Christian meeting and distributed some tracts that allegedly contained comparisons between the teachings of Jesus Christ and those of Muhammad. The Muslim extremists accused Maqbool of making derogatory remarks against Muhammad, threatened to kill him and filed a police complaint against him. Area Christian leaders maintained that the tracts did not contain any hateful remarks against Muhammad; they asserted that the Muslim extremists reprinted the tracts after adding some lines insulting to Muhammad in order to fabricate a case against the Christians. Maqbool was put in a jail cell, with the Down Court rejecting his petition for bail on Sept. 21.

Chhattisgarh – On Sept. 15 in Raipur, Hindu extremists misrepresenting themselves as journalists barged into a prayer meeting led by Pastor Kamlakarrao Bokada and accused him of “forceful conversion,” verbally abused him and falsely accused him of dishonoring their idols. They ordered the pastor to video-record the prayer meeting, but he refused. The pastor, who visits Christian homes in the Khorpi area, was ordered not to do so again. Police refused to register a complaint by Christians.

Andhra Pradesh – Hindu extremists in Vizianagaram on Sept. 13 attacked a pastor’s wife, injuring her head, and told the church leader to leave the area, according to the All India Christian Council. The attack came after Pastor Y. Caleb Raj of Good Shepherd Community Church requested that youths playing loud music before the idol of Ganesh near his church not disturb the Sept. 12 worship service. As the pastor was speaking to organizers of the Ganesh event, Hindu extremists gathered and some tried to manhandle him. They told him to close down the church and leave the village. When Pastor Raj was out on ministry work the next day, the same group of Hindu extremists came and struck his wife with a wooden club. Pastor Raj filed a police complaint, but no arrests had been made at press time.

Chhattisgarh – Hindu extremists in Raigarh on Sept. 12 beat evangelist Robinson Roat and ordered him to stop all Christian activities. The Global Council of Indian Christians reported that about 25 extremists barged into the worship meeting in Roat’s home. They told him he would face further harm if he left his house. The Christian did not venture out for two days.

Madhya Pradesh – Hindu extremists in Satna on Sept. 12 accused Pastor V.A. Anthony of “forceful conversion” and of carrying out the funeral of a non-Christian in a local Christian cemetery. Based on the complaint of the Hindu extremists, the inspector general of police summoned Pastor Anthony and a high-level inquiry is pending, reported the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC). The son of a local church member had died under mysterious circumstances earlier this year, and the pastor and church members had buried him in the Christian cemetery according to the wishes of his parents and other relatives, according to the GCIC.

Uttar Pradesh – Hindu nationalists from the extremist Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh on Sept. 5 beat a pastor in Sarva village in Babina, Jhansi district. The Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) reported that three Hindu extremists led by Surendra Yadav and armed with wooden clubs barged into the church building after Sunday classes and beat Pastor Anil Masih on his back and legs, kicked him and verbally abused him. The assault went on for about 30 minutes. The next day, Masih’s father informed Babina police. Masih received hospital treatment for a broken left leg. GCIC sources told Compass that after Masih’s discharge from the hospital on Sept. 10, he filed a complaint against the extremists at the Babina police station on Sept. 13. At press time, no arrests had been made.

Karnataka – Police on Sept. 1 stopped a pastors’ meeting in Mysore, claiming that they were being trained to “convert people,” though conversion and persuading to convert is legal in India. The Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) reported that the Mysore Pastors Association organized a two-week pastoral training program with about 50 local church leaders and evangelists in attendance. Police arrived and ordered the organizers to vacate the premises by the next day. Even though such trainings are legally permitted in India, the Christians called off the meeting.

Rajasthan – Hindu extremists attacked two Christian workers, damaged their vehicles and seized evangelistic literature from them on Aug. 26 in Udaipur. The All India Christian Council reported that evangelists Charlie John and V.M. George were distributing gospel tracts when a group of Hindu extremists suddenly came and began objecting. The extremists blocked their vehicle and beat the two Christians, leaving them with serious injuries. Police came to their rescue and suggested they file a complaint against the extremists, but the Christians said they chose to forgive their attackers.

Report from Compass Direct News

Massive ‘Reconversion’ Event in India Aimed at Christians

Hard-line cleric leads campaign in Maharashtra, ideological capital of Hindu nationalism.

MUMBAI, India, October 27 (CDN) — Hundreds of tribal Christians and adherents of aboriginal religion from villages in Maharashtra state were reportedly “reconverted” to Hinduism yesterday in the Mumbai suburb of Thane at a ceremony led by a Hindu nationalist cleric.

Swami Narendra Maharaj’s goal was to “reconvert” 6,000 Christians in the so-called purification ceremony, reported The Hindustan Times, which put the number of “reconversions” at around 800. Hindu nationalists believe all Indians are born Hindu and therefore regard acceptance of Hinduism by those practicing other religions as “reconversion.”

Maharaj, a Hindu cleric known for opposing proclamation of Christ, has allegedly led anti-Christian attacks in tribal regions. On March 15, 2008, his men reportedly attacked two Catholic nuns, Sister Marceline and Sister Philomena, from the non-profit Jeevan Jyoti Kendra (Light of Life Center) in Sahanughati, near Mumbai.

The attack took place in a camp to educate tribal women on HIV/AIDS, which also provided information on government welfare programs, according to Indo-Asian News Service. The assault in Sahanughati, Alibaug district was followed by a mass “reconversion” ceremony in the area on April 27, 2008, said Ram Puniyani, a well-known civil rights activist in Mumbai.

Rightwing Hindu groups are mostly active in tribal areas. Hindu nationalists attack Christians in tribal areas because they provide social and development services, regarded as competition by rightwing Hindus seeking to woo tribal voters, said Anwar Rajan, secretary of the People’s Union of Civil Liberties (PUCL) in Maharashtra’s Pune city.

Kandhamal district in the eastern state of Orissa, where a massive spate of anti-Christian attacks took place in August-September 2008, is also a tribal-majority area. At least 100 Christians were killed, 4,600 houses and churches were burned, and over 50,000 people were rendered homeless in the violence.

Sociologists maintain that India’s tribal peoples are not Hindus but practice their own ethnic faiths. Hindu nationalists run Ekal Vidyalayas (one-teacher schools) in tribal regions to “Hinduize” local villagers and repel conversions to other faiths. These schools are operating in over 27,000 villages of India.

Dubious Claims

An anonymous spokesman of Maharaj said the plan for yesterday’s event was to “reconvert” 6,000 Christians to achieve the larger goal of “bringing back” 100,000 Christians, according to the Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency.

The rightwing spokesman in Maharashtra, a western state where Hindu nationalism originated decades ago, claimed that Maharaj and his followers had overseen the conversion of more than 94,000 Christians “back to their original faith” and plan to complete the target of 100,000 in the next two years.

Maharaj, whose followers call him Jagat Guru (Guru of the World), told PTI that those who “reconverted” were not coerced.

“We are not having a religious conversion here – it’s a process of purification,” Maharaj was quoted as saying. “We taught them the precepts of the Hindu religion, and they decided to convert to Hinduism on their own after repentance. They were not forced.”

Many reports of “reconversions,” however, have been found to be false.

In 2007, Hindi-language daily Punjab Kesari reported that four Christian families in Nahan town, in the northern state of Himachal Pradesh, had “reconverted” to Hinduism. But a fact-finding team of the All India Christian Council revealed that none of the members of those families had ever converted to Christianity.

The Hindustan Times reported yesterday’s ceremony included rituals involving cow’s milk, seeking forgiveness from ancestors, installation of idols of the Hindu gods Ganesh and Vishnu, and an offering ritual performed by priests from Ayodhya, in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh. Ayodhya is believed to be the birthplace of the Hindu god Rama.

Home of Hindu Nationalism

The basic philosophy of Hindu nationalism was expounded by Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, popularly known as Veer Savarkar, in 1923 through the publishing of a pamphlet, “Hindutva: Who is a Hindu?” Savarkar, who is from Maharashtra, argued that only those who have their ancestors from India as well as consider India as their holy land should have full citizenship rights.

A follower of Savarkar, Madhav Sadashiv Golwalkar, also from Maharashtra, further developed the Hindu nationalist philosophy through a book, “A Bunch of Thoughts,” in 1966. He claimed superiority of Hinduism over other religions and cultures of the world.

“In this land, Hindus have been the owners, Parsis and Jews the guests, and Muslims and Christians the dacoits [bandits],” he said.

The emergence of Hindu nationalist ideology from Maharashtra came in reaction to the politics of social justice by Dr. Bhim Rao Ambedkar and Mahatma (Jyotirao) Phule, said Irfan Engineer, director of the Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies in Mumbai and an expert on religious conflicts. Phule led a mass movement of emancipation of lower castes, mainly Shudras and Ati-Shudras or Dalits, in the 1870s. Ambedkar, known as the architect of the Indian Constitution, began movements against “untouchability” in the 1920s.

Also born in Maharashtra was the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (National Volunteer Corps, or RSS), India’s most influential Hindu nationalist conglomerate. It was founded in 1925 in Nagpur by Dr. K.B. Hedgewar.

Hindu society has traditionally had four castes or social classes, namely Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaishya and Shudra. While Shudras belong to the lowest caste, Dalits were formerly known as “untouchables” because the priestly Brahmin class considered them to be outside the confines of the caste system.

During British colonial rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947, sections of the Brahmins felt the British were sympathetic towards the Dalit reformist movement, said Engineer of the Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies. Mahars, Maharashtra’s largest Dalit people group, have been very organized and powerful since then.

The PUCL’s Rajan said that the Brahmins have long portrayed minorities as enemies of Hinduism.

“Since the Dalit reformist movement is essentially against the Brahmin hegemony, the Brahmins had to react and get organized,” Rajan said. “As a part of their strategy to weaken the reformist movement, Brahmins projected minorities as the ‘real’ enemies of all Hindus, including Dalits and other lower castes, diverting attention away from the atrocities they meted out on them.”

Most of the founding leaders of Hindu nationalism, including Savarkar, Hedgewar and Golwalkar, were Brahmins. Since communal troubles benefited Hindu nationalists politically, the use of divisive issues became routine for them, Rajan added.

After two successive defeats of the Bharatiya Janata Party, political wing of the RSS, in general elections in 2004 and 2009, differences between the moderate and extremist sections within the Hindu nationalist movement – which blame each other for the party’s downfall – have deepened to unprecedented levels.

In frustration, the extremists have accelerated their activities, especially in Maharashtra, the ideological capital, said Dr. Suresh Khairnar, a well-known civil activist from Nagpur.

Report from Compass Direct News 

Recent Incidents of Persecution

Uttar Pradesh, India, September 29 (CDN) — Hindu extremists chased a pastor into hiding on Sept. 19 in Lucknow. The All India Christian Council (AICC) reported that hardliners from the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, Vishwa Hindu Parishad ( World Hindu Council or VHP), Bharatiya Janata Party and Bajrang Dal (youth wing of the VHP) accused Pastor Bechu Azah Chhedi of forceful conversions as they arrived in large number at his church in Ramdaspur village and disrupted the worship service. The same group has attacked the pastor three times, reported AICC, and local Christians who found out about the extremists’ plan hid him. The pastor has relocated for safety.

Jammu and Kashmir – Police detained Pastor Salamat Masih and three others on false charges of forceful conversion on Sept. 17 in Hira Nagar. The Global Council of Indian Christians reported that Hindu extremists from the Shiv Sena (Religious Army) beat the pastor and falsely accused him of offering 10,000 rupees (US$207) to each of three converts from Hinduism about to be baptized. Police arrived and took the pastor and the three others to the police station, keeping them in custody for two days as a safety measure; local people incited by the extremists were eager to attack them, reported a source. No case was filed against the pastor after the intervention of local Christian leaders.

Andhra Pradesh – About 10 Hindu extremists on Sept. 13 attacked a worship meeting of Opier Ministries Evangelical Church in Warangal, beating a pastor. The All India Christian Council (AICC) reported that around 1 p.m., the intolerant Hindus barged into the worship service conducted by Pastor Pilly Kumar, verbally abused and beat him, and destroyed a sign board bearing the church’s name. The pastor filed a police complaint, but officers refused to register a case. In May the extremists had warned the pastor not to conduct worship services in the area, reported the AICC.

Madhya Pradesh – Police arrested eight Christians from Blessing Youth Mission (BYM) under the state’s anti-conversion law on Sept. 12 in Katni. A source reported that Christians, including women, were on their way to visit their children at a BYM hostel. They were waiting on the railway platform when, as a Christian worker scheduled to pick them up arrived, railway police arrived and accused them of forceful conversion, blasphemy against Hindu gods and creating havoc. The charges included “deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of others with acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention.” The Christians were detained for about 20 hours and released on bail.

Karnataka – A group of unidentified men attacked St. Francis De Sales Church near Hebbagudi, Bangalore early on the morning of Sept. 10. The Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) reported that the men were carrying weapons and broke into the building, damaging windows. The Press Trust of India reported that statues of Infant Jesus and Mother Mary on the premises were damaged. The group also tried to burn a van parked in front of the church building. Damages were estimated at about 200,000 rupees (US$4,144), reported the GCIC. The church has filed a complaint and a First Information Report at Hebbagudi police station. Last year Karnataka, ruled by the Hindu extremist Bharatiya Janata Party, faced a series of attacks on churches in Mangalore, Bangalore, Davanagere, Kodagu and other towns.

Karnataka – Hindu extremists from the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and Shiv Sena (Religious Army) on Sept. 10 attacked a pastor identified only as Ramanjaniah, accused him of cheating people and of forceful conversion, then beat him and paraded him on the street in Tumkur. The Global Council of Indian Christian reported that the pastor was conducting a prayer meeting at a Christian’s house when the intolerant Hindus stormed into the house and assaulted him. They tore a Bible and beat, punched and kicked the pastor and continued beating him as they dragged him about one kilometer. The pastor received hospital treatment for fractures in his face and leg. The extremists pressured police to restrain the pastor from future preaching, but officers only requested the pastor inform them before he conducts worship. They promised police protection should he require it.

Madhya Pradesh – Police arrested a Christian worker for “preaching to forcefully convert people to Christianity” based on a complaint filed by the Hindu extremist Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) on Sept. 8 in Barwani district. Sources reported that the RSS members dragged Gopi Krishnan of Friends Missionaries Prayer Band (FMPB) to the police station to file the complaint against him. The police booked him for joining in an assembly of more than five people after being commanded to disperse, and of abetment of the offense. Krishnan appeared before the sub-divisional magistrate the next day and was sent to Barwani district jail. He was granted bail on Sept. 10. FMPB representative Ravi Kumar told Compass that RSS members are pressuring Krishnan to leave his house before Sept. 30 or face harm. The Christian is scheduled to appear before a magistrate on Nov. 9. Local Christian leaders maintained that preaching to “forcefully convert” people does not take place in the area.

Rajasthan – About 30 Hindu extremists on Sept. 4 assaulted two Christian workers from Gospel for Asia and chased them into the jungle near Banswada. Sources reported that the extremists waylaid the two Christians as they were returning from a prayer meeting and viciously beat them and verbally abused them. The Christians fled and hid in the nearby forest. A Christian search team found the duo at midnight and gave them shelter. A Gospel for Asia representative said their names could not be disclosed for security reasons.

Orissa – Suspected Hindu extremists armed with country pistols and swords on Sept. 3 attacked Pastor Isaac Digal of Good Shepherd Community Church for holding a worship service in his house – beating him, his wife and daughter and ransacking his home in Kandhamal. The All India Christian Council reported that the extremists also took his mobile phone, bank book and ATM card. The Hindu extremists had reportedly made an earlier attempt to destroy his house and had threatened him several times. Police arrived at the scene, and the pastor filed a complaint. No arrests had been made at press time.

Andhra Pradesh – About 30 Hindu extremists attacked a pastor and a church on Aug. 30 in Mudinepalli. The All India Christian Council reported the Hindu extremists installed a microphone on the roof of the church building, and a Hindu idol in front it, as part of the Hindu Ganesh festival. Pastor Solomon Raju asked the extremists and a local official to move the mike to some other place, with the Hindu hardliners responding by disrupting the Sunday worship service and beating the pastor. He filed a police complaint. No arrests had been made at press time.

Report from Compass Direct News 

INDIA: NEWS BRIEFS – Recent Incidents of Persecution

Karnataka, August 21 (Compass Direct News) – About 100 Hindu extremists disrupted an August 17 worship service, attacked Christians and destroyed church furniture and music instruments in Davengere. The Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) reported that the extremists, headed by Vishwa Hindu Parishad (World Hindu Council) leader Deepak Ranode and three others barged into Jesus Prayer Hall armed with sticks and saffron-colored flags chanting anti-Christian slogans. The assailants threatened the believers and pressured them to give false statements accusing the pastor and others of “alluring” people to convert to Christianity. When the Christians refused, the Hindu extremists began assaulting them and smashing church furniture and musical instruments. Two Christians identified only as Rodrappa, 50, and Ramesh, 25, were injured and received hospital treatment. A GCIC representative told Compass that the two parties met at the office of the District Collector and reached a compromise, with the official ordering the extremists not to attack the Christians again.

Madhya Pradesh – Police on August 15 detained two Christians in Ratlam district for “forced conversion” under the so-called Freedom of Religion Act after about 35 Hindu extremists stormed a prayer meeting organized by the Union of Evangelical Students at St. Bartholomew Church, Railway Colony area. The Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) reported that on the occasion of India’s Independence Day, nearly 75 believers belonging to various Christian groups including Youth With a Mission (YWAM) and World Vision had congregated at the church when the extremists began beating them and chased them away, forcing a few into a local police station. Sam Mathew, GCIC regional coordinator, told Compass that soon additional forces swelled the number of the mob to nearly 70. “Amos Avula of YWAM, who was earlier targeted by the extremists, was questioned and allowed to return home,” Mathew said. “However, police arrested Satyanarayan Rao and another believer identified only as N.T. Murti. They were released on bail on August 16 at 4:30 p.m.”

Karnataka – Hindu extremists on August 15 tore up tracts and beat Bible College students in Bajpai, Mangalore district. Dr. Sajan K. George of the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) said that at 2:30 p.m., after Independence Day celebrations, six Bible College students accompanied by a warden identified only as Martha P. went to Panambur Beach to distribute Christian literature. Local pastor Sunny Mathew told Compass that neither the students nor the warden were aware that they were being watched by two Hindu extremists as they handed out tracts to people on the beach. The extremists phoned other intolerant Hindus who arrived at the beach, swelling the mob to 30, and surrounded the students, kicking and punching them after destroying their pamphlets. Two students were injured. Police took the students and extremists to the police station. With GCIC intervention a compromise was reached and no case was registered against either the students or the extremists.

Karnataka – In Davengere, Hindu extremists belonging to the Hindu Jagarana Vedike and Shiva Sainya youth association on August 12 surrounded the house of a pastor, threw stones at it and demanded that all senior pastors leave the district. The Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) reported that a mob of about 200 extremists stoned the house of pastor Prem Kumar, demanding that he and two other senior pastors leave. They warned the pastors not to conduct any future prayer and worship services in their homes. Carrying their anti-Christian campaign throughout the district, they visited people who had recently shown interest in Christianity and demanded to know what inducement they had been offered to convert. Following the advice of police officials, many pastors fled their homes leaving their wives and children behind. GCIC told Compass that the atmosphere was still tense at press time, and police were reluctant to take any action against the extremists.

Karnataka – Police in Karnataka on Aug 11 arrested a pastor and an evangelist for hurting religious sentiments and making derogatory remarks about Hindu gods after Hindu extremists attacked them and their house church in Yemanna Bethur, Harpanahalli taluk, Davangere district. Dr. Sajan K. George of the Global Council of Indian Christians said that at around 5:45 p.m. nearly 20 Hindu extremists allegedly belonging to the Shiva Sainya youth association attacked house church pastor Rajendra Gowda’s prayer service, slapping and punching him and an evangelist identified only as Kumara. The intolerant Hindus threatened members of the congregation and chased them away. They ripped the shirts of Gowda and Kumara, tied their hands to a van that had saffron flags and posters of Hindu gods on it, and forced the Christians to walk nearly seven kilometers (about four miles). The exhausted church leaders were then pushed into the van and taken to the Davangere rural police station nearly 20 kilometers (12 miles) away, with the extremists slapping and punching them in the van on the way. Police arrested Gowda and Kumara after extremists registered a false complaint against them of outraging religious feelings and intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace. “Gowda and Kumara were released on bail on August 13 at 6:15 p.m.,” George said.

Karnataka – Hindu extremists belonging to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh disrupted an August 10 worship service and injured believers in Gadag. Pastor Samuel Philip was conducting the service under police protection, having been warned the previous day of a possible attack, but the extremists seized the chance to attack when officers returned to the police station, reported the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC). The intolerant Hindus barged into the church and attacked the pastor and other Christians, with the injured receiving first aid at a local hospital. GCIC told Compass that the Christians and the extremists have reached a compromise, and police assured the Christian community of future protection.

Chhattisgarh – Three Hindu extremists on August 10 assaulted Pastor Dev Kumar Sahu in Chalaty village, Ambagarh Chowki, Rajnandgaon district. Dr. Sajan K. George of the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) said Sahu of Indian Full Gospel Church was commissioned by his senior pastor, the Rev. K.J. George, to visit house churches in Chalaty village. As Sahu was sipping a beverage at a tea stall in Chalaty, area Hindu extremist Tulsi Ambade came up to him and angrily questioned him about the reason for his visit to the village. Ambade falsely accused him of forced conversions, George said, and two other extremists joined in and repeatedly kicked and punched the pastor while shouting filthy curses at him. They left only after Sahu collapsed to the ground. Sahu later filed a complaint against the extremists at the local police station. “Sahu had recently undergone a hernia operation,” Rev. George, the senior pastor, told Compass. “He had swollen arms, legs and face from the extremists’ attack and was admitted to a private nursing home for treatment.” With Rev. George’s intervention Ambade and Sahu reached a compromise: Tulsi agreed not to harass the Christians in the village, and Sahu forgave him and withdrew the case on August 19.

Karnataka – Hindutva (Hindu nationalist) extremists on August 8 attacked a prayer meeting, then beat and falsely accused a pastor of forcible conversion in Kodipura village, Ramanagara district. Dr. Sajan K. George of the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) said that as pastor M. Mahesh of Agape Church was conducting a thanksgiving prayer service at the house of a church member identified only as Lokesh for 12 people, a mob of around 15 extremists led by persons identified only as Ganesh and Madesh barged into the house. The intolerant Hindus loudly cursed at the pastor and others and disrupted the service. George told Compass that the extremists falsely accused Mahesh of “alluring” villagers to convert to Christianity and warned Lokesh to stop future Christian prayers in his house. The extremists phoned local police as the anti-Christian mob swelled to nearly 50. Police brought the pastor and Lokesh to the police station, where the extremists shouted Hindu devotional chants. Police permitted Mahesh and Lokesh to leave the station at about 11 p.m. “With GCIC’s intervention, a First Information Report was registered against the extremists,” George said. “Police arrested three extremists and released them on bail.”

Andhra Pradesh – Hindu extremists on August 7 forcibly tried to occupy land belonging to a church and school in Ranga Reddy district. The All Indian Christian Council of India reported that the extremists forcibly occupied the land in front of JW International School and a church and erected a temporary Hindu temple. After school officers filed a complaint, government officials destroyed the temple, telling the Hindus they could not build such a structure on the land without permission. The next day, about 400 intolerant Hindus gathered at the site, beating drums and holding flags, and erected the structure anew. Once again the government demolished it. Later that evening, the extremists stoned the church and school buildings. With the intervention of police officials, the Hindu extremists left the school area.

Karnataka – Hindutva (Hindu nationalist) extremists on August 4 broke open the locked gate of a Christian elementary school, stormed the principal’s office and demanded replacement of a Christian cross with a Hindu OM symbol in Mudhol, Bagalkot district. Dr. Sajan K. George of the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) told Compass that at around 3:30 p.m. a mob of nearly 35 Hindu extremists armed with saffron-colored, triangular flags and wooden batons broke into the Samuel Memorial Convent School. They angrily demanded that principal Margaret Samuel replace the cross in the school logo with the OM symbol and instructed her to install idols of Hindu gods in the corridors. They also demanded that pictures of Saraswati Devi, the Hindu goddess of learning, be framed in the principal’s office, and warned that there would be repeated attacks on the school if their demands were not met. “Around 5:30 p.m., Mrs. Samuel called for an emergency Parent-Teachers Association [PTA] meeting,” George said, “wherein with GCIC support, she apprised the PTA of the extremists’ attacks and demands on the school. The PTA pledged their support to the Christian institution and took a resolution not to give in to the extremists.” Started in 2005, the school has 625 students.

Madhya Pradesh – Members of the Hindu fundamentalist Abhinav Bharat and other groups attacked pastor Sam Oommen and his family at Jayprakash Nagar, Adhartal, Jabalpur district on August 3. Dr. Sajan K. George of the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) said that a mob of nearly 45 Hindu extremists from the Bajrang Dal and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh began shouting “Jai Shri Ram [Hail Lord Ram]” outside Pastor Oommen’s home, where his house church meets. Oommen and his family, not home at the time, returned at 3:30 p.m. but extremists prevented them from entering their house. Police were reportedly silent spectators while the assailants harassed Pastor Oommen and his family. The attackers accompanied by police dragged the 43-year-old pastor of a Full Gospel Church home fellowship and his wife, Jessy Sam, and two children to the Adhartal police station, where the couple was charged with forcible conversion. Pastor Oommen’s children were sent home at 5 p.m. According to Assistant Sub-Inspector Saras Tripathi, electrician Hemant Kumar Sahu filed the complaint. Sahu met the couple in May when he went to the house to fit electrical equipment. He told police that Pastor Oommen and his wife subsequently “brainwashed” him on the pretext of praying for his ailing mother, forced him to be baptized and asked him to remove pictures of Hindu gods from his home. Sahu also said that the couple promised him that his mother’s medical expenses would be paid and that he should denounce Hindu gods and goddesses. Sahu told police that the resulting heavy mental stress led him to report the matter to Abhinav Bharat extremists, who along with the other Hindu nationalist groups then staged a demonstration demanding police action. Leading the Abhinav Bharat mob was state organization Vice Chairman Maya Ram Jethwani, who spoke to local media and accused the church of operating illegally. He also said a conspiracy by Christian missionaries was underway to convert the entire area and called for an investigation. Pastor Oommen and Christian leaders of Jabalpur denied the charges, which they say are concocted. Police locked up the church and put security guards in place. Pastor Oommen and his wife were released on bail on August 6.

Karnataka – Police on July 31 arrested Christians of the Believers Church in Turuvekere, Tumkur district after Hindu extremists allegedly belonging to the Ram Sena (Army of Ram) attacked a prayer meeting, beating Christians present. The Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) reported that at around 8 p.m. nearly 30 Hindu extremists armed with wooden clubs stormed a dedication prayer service at the house of a believer identified only as Ramkrishnappa. The intolerant Hindus beat a pastor identified only as Shivshankar H.D. and four other Christians and destroyed 18 Bibles. They then took the Christians to the Turuvekere police station and registered a First Information Report (FIR) against them for inciting communal disharmony. Dr. Sajan K. George of the GCIC told Compass that police registered no counter FIR against the extremists. George has written to the National Human Rights Commission seeking justice for the Christians, who were released on bail on August 8.

Andhra Pradesh – Hindu extremists on July 29 attacked Christian students, accusing them of distributing Christian literature to “forcefully convert” college students, and burned and dumped three boxes of Christian books in a ditch in Miryalyuda, Nalgonda. The All India Christian Council (AICC) reported that two young Christian women were distributing gospel tracts among college students when three extremists seized the literature from them and burned it. Both parties have filed a police complaint. Moses Vattipalli of AICC told Compass that they have reached a compromise, with police assuring local Christian leaders of protection against such incidents in the future.

Andhra Pradesh – Hindu extremists belonging to the youth wing of the Bharatiya Janata Party on July 27 attacked a pastor and a Christian media team for showing a film about Jesus Christ, tore the screen and burned it along with Bibles in Janagam. The Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) reported that about 20 furious extremists barged into the home of a pastor identified only as Devadanam while about 100 people were watching the film and destroyed the projector, speakers and tables and threatened to kill the pastor if he tried screening the film again. The pastor filed a police complaint, and six attackers were taken to the police station. Dr. Sajan K. George of the GCIC told Compass that the attackers were released after a stern warning not to disturb the Christians again.

Karnataka – Hindutva (Hindu nationalist) extremists on July 27 attacked a gospel meeting in Anugraha Hotel, Bagalkot district and beat the pastor and other Christians, including a 4-year-old girl. Dr. Sajan K. George of the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) said that nearly 40 extremists barged into the meeting hall cursing and beating pastor Basappa Durgappa of Free Fellowship Pentecostal Churches of Karnataka. They punched and slapped other Christians, including women and children. “The extremists flung chairs at the congregation, causing serious head injury to a 4-year-old child identified only as Priyanka, and four believers also suffered minor injuries,” George told Compass. The extremists also tore up nearly 100 Bibles and hymnals, he said. Police took the pastor, his wife and two daughters to the police station for interrogation, with the extremists shouting Hindu chants along the way. “The extremists filed a complaint against Durgappa, but with the intervention of the GCIC, Durgappa and his family were allowed to leave the police station around 10:30 p.m. and all the charges were dropped,” George said. “The Christians were treated at the Keruddi Hospital in Bagalkot, and Priyanka has received 13 stitches on her head.”

Karnataka – Police in India continued their custom of jailing Christian victims of Hindu aggression on July 27, arresting a pastor in Ankoal, Karwar district after nearly 20 Hindu extremists dragged him out of his house church service and repeatedly slapped him. The Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) reported that the intolerant Hindus barged into the house church of independent pastor Anand Huva Naik on Kenny Road, disrupted worship and cursed and slapped Naik before yanking him out of his home. They threatened the other Christians, including women, chasing the congregation away. Police who had prior information about the attackers’ intent arrived at noon and took the pastor to the Ankola town police station and charged him with intentional insult, provocation, breaking public peace and causing hurt. With the legal help of the GCIC, Naik was released at 1:45 p.m. the next day.

Orissa – In Badrak district, Hindu extremists on July 26 ruptured a believer’s eardrum and threatened to burn him alive. The Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) reported that Hindu extremists led by Utpal Nayak summoned Baloy Kumar Baraik, a Christian laboratory assistant at Sunshine Mission School, to the principal’s office. There Hindu extremists who formed part of the school’s management board beat and punched Baraik in the ear for nearly half an hour, forcing him to sign a blank document and threatening to burn him and his family in the same way that Australian missionary Graham Staines and his two sons were killed in 1999. The Hindu extremist board members seek to remove all Christian staff members from the school. Baraik, who received hospital treatment for severe ear injuries, lodged a police complaint but no arrests had been made at press time. GCIC officials told Compass that the school management had fired Baraik from his job, but the rights organizations were taking the case to a higher court.

Karnataka – A mob of about 20 Hindu extremists vandalized a church building, seriously injured a pastor and accused him of forced conversion on July 20 in Konvallichawla, Haveri. The Global Council of Indian Christians reported that the intolerant Hindus barged into the Sunday worship service of Friends Prayer Band Church, brutally attacked the pastor and destroyed all Christian literature, including Bibles. The Hindu extremists took the pastor to the police station, where he collapsed from his injuries. Police initially refused to accept the complaint of assault by the pastor’s wife, Mary, instead threatening to throw the couple out of the district if they filed charges. The pastor was discharged from the hospital after receiving intensive care for three days. A case has been filed against the extremists, but no arrests had been made at press time.

Report from Compass Direct News