Since the Hindu nationalist BJP came to power in 2014, radical Hinduism has increased steadily. Several states outlaw proselytism, and there have been efforts to impose such so-called “anti-conversion laws” at a national level. The violence of radical Hindu groups or angry mobs of villagers is often allowed by local, state and national authorities dominated by the BJP. This means the Hindu radicals can act with increasing impunity.
Indian bureaucrat convert to challenge preaching ban
Chellakani Umashankar, an elite Indian bureaucrat in southern Tamil Nadu state, has decided to challenge the order by the government of southern Tamil Nadu state that asked him to stop preaching and cancel his evangelical conventions. “This is nonsense. I am going to challenge it in the court” 51-year-old Umashankar, […]
Obama addresses persecution during India visit
President Obama addressed India’s treatment of minority faiths during his final speech on January 27 after a three-day-long visit to the country. His comments were widely interpreted as a message to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), whose rise to power emboldened activists to declare India […]
Ahead of Obama’s visit, India’s Christians start hotline on Hindu harassment
President Modi welcomes President Barack Obama & Michelle Obama to India on 25 January 2015.Photo: narendramodi.in President Obama ended his visit to India with a speech referring to religious freedom which has been interpreted as an attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s treatment of minority faiths, although Modi was […]
We meant what we said
Between 30 and 40 recent Indian converts to Christianity have signed their names to a petition to re-affirm their decision and to seek police protection from intimidation by fundamentalist Hindu groups that want to bring the Dalits back to Hinduism. The petition claims that several nationalist groups have been intruding […]
Full Steam Ahead
ANALYSIS By John Dayal There is an element of irony, which has not gone entirely unnoticed, in Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s announcement that what the world knows as Christmas will henceforth be celebrated in India as “Good Governance Day.” A slew of activities in honour of the first Bharatiya […]
10 arrested for insulting Hinduism
When police in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh determined there was nothing to support accusations that 10 Christians had tried to bribe a Hindu into conversion, the Christians were then accused of insulting Hinduism. The Indian Express reported that police arrested the Christians — five men and five […]
India Hindu leaders turn up ‘reconversion’ rhetoric
RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat in JammuVishal Dutta / Flickr / Creative Commons Ignoring paralyzing opposition in Parliament and private expressions of exasperation from their own political leader, the top leaders of India’s fundamentalist Hindu movement have mounted a vigorous defense of a campaign to bring Christian converts back to […]
Christmas 2014 ‘evokes not joy but fears’ for India’s Christians
Christmas is an occasion mostly associated with joy and celebration. But since the start of the holiday season, India’s minority religious groups of Christians and Muslims have been especially under pressure. The Indian Parliament has hardly functioned since the start of December because several opposition lawmakers have been protesting a […]
Christmas repurposed in India
In the lead up to Christmas, India’s Ministry of Human Resource Development has asked all schools to observe 25 December as ‘Good Governance Day.’ It is marked to celebrate the birthdays of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, a former Prime Minister of India, and Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya, a Hindu nationalist, educationist […]
India’s PM urged to investigate Delhi church fire
Investigations are currently underway after St. Sebastian’s church, among the largest in East Delhi, went up in flames on the morning of 1 December. According to Daijiworld, Delhi Archbishop Dr. Anil Couto has called on India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi to urgently order a judicial enquiry into the fire in […]