Hindu women lured with inducements, subjected to brainwashing with religious texts, and denigration of Hindu deities to convert to Christianity
Hanumangarh, Rajasthan, India 
27 September, 2025
Case Summary
In Nohar, Hanumangarh, Rajasthan, Hindu women were targeted for Christian conversion by a Christian pastor named Bashir and his accomplices. The accused lured the women with financial inducements and brainwashed them with Christian texts to convert to Christianity. When the victims refused to convert, the accused abused Hindu gods and goddesses. According to media reports, the police registered a case against Bashir and initiated an investigation. The incident occurred on 28th September 2025. After the incident came to light, a crowd of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) activists and local residents gathered. Responding to the call, the police arrested Bashir, a resident of Barwala in Haryana, at the scene. Station In-Charge Ishwarnand Sharma stated that Christian books and pamphlets were also seized from the location. Usha, a local Hindu woman, filed a complaint at the Nohar police station. According to her report, Bashir had been living in a rented house near Ward No. 28, Kalli Bhatta, for the past year. She stated that he enticed local women with money to convert to Christianity. The complaint further stated that when Hindu women refused his offers, Bashir used abusive language and made derogatory remarks about Hindu gods and goddesses. He distributed pamphlets promoting religious conversion under the guise of religious gatherings. Usha Devi stated that on 28th September 2025, Bashir came to her house and asked her to attend a gathering, offering her 2000 rupees as an incentive. The report stated that when Usha refused, Bashir used abusive language and left. She informed other women in the neighbourhood, who then went to Bashir's house. There, too, Bashir used abusive language and threatened them. Hearing the commotion, people gathered and informed the police. The FIR named Bashir, his wife, Vinod (another pastor), Bala, and Jaspal Parmar as the perpetrators.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case has been added to the tracker under the primary category- Predatory Proselytisation. Within this, the subcategory selected is- Conversion/attempts to convert by inducement. Predatory Proselytisation is not just limited to threat, harassment, force and violence, but it also has contours of stealth. In several cases, the Hindu victim is exploited to convert, with non-Hindus taking advantage of their poverty. In such cases, the Hindu victim who is suffering financially is offered monetary benefits, including lucrative offers for jobs, health treatment, education, etc, to induce the victim into changing his/her religion. In such cases, the religious identity of the victim and the aim to disenfranchise him from his faith form the heart of the crime. Also, taking advantage of and exploiting an individual’s economic vulnerabilities is widely acknowledged as exploitation, forms of which are often penalised by law. Such cases therefore are considered religiously motivated hate crimes since the victim’s religious identity forms the very heart of the crime itself. The other subcategory selected is- Proselytisation by grooming, brainwashing, manipulation, or subtle indoctrination. The tertiary category selected in this case is- Pattern of targeting Hindus. Religious brainwashing essentially means the often subtle and forcible indoctrination to induce someone to give up their religious beliefs to accept contrasting regimented ideas. Religious grooming or brainwashing also involves propaganda and manipulation. It involves the systematic effort, driven by religious malice and indoctrination, to persuade “non-believers’ to accept allegiance, command, or doctrine to and of a contrasting faith. Cases of such grooming or brainwashing are far more nuanced than direct threats, coercion, inducement and violence. In such cases, it is often seen that there is repeated, subtle and continual manipulation of the victim to induce disaffection towards their own faith and acceptance of the contrasting faith of the perpetrator. While subtle indoctrination is widely acknowledged as predatory, an element which is often understated in such conversions or the attempts of such conversion is the role of loyalty and trust which might develop between the perpetrator and the victim. Fiduciary relationships are often abused to affect such religious conversion. For example, an educator transmitting religious doctrine of a competing faith to a Hindu student. The Hindu student is likely to accept what the teacher is transmitting owing to existence of the fiduciary relationship. The exploitation of the fiduciary relationship to religiously indoctrinate victims would also be included in this category. Since the underlying animosity towards the victim’s faith forms the basis of predatory proselytization, such cases are considered religiously motivated hate crimes. The other subcategory selected is- Attempting to convert/ converting by denigrating Hinduism. In several cases, Hindus are converted or an attempt is made to convert Hindus by denigrating their faith, Hinduism. In such cases, the Hindus associate with the non-Hindu perpetrators often by choice and then, the attempt to convert them by insulting their faith, showing the faith down etc begins. An example of this would be a non-Hindu gathering where the Hindus are attending the gathering of their own free will. However, once they attend the gathering, there is an explicit attempt to convert them by abusing their faith and hailing the faith of the perpetrator. The denigration of the Hindu faith is often based on misrepresentation of the Hindu faith, its doctrine and scriptures and insult to espoused traditions if not blatant lies about Hindu beliefs and ways. Such conversions or attempts at conversions are driven by animosity towards the Hindu faith and are therefore documented as religiously motivated hate crimes. In this case, Hindu women were lured with monetary incentives and manipulated to convert to Christianity by Christian evangelists. Even Christian religious literature and texts were used to brainwash the Hindu victims into conversion. Even Hindu gods and goddesses were denigrated by the accused. The nature of the conversion efforts and the wider impact on the Hindu community all indicate a targeted action against Hindus as a collectivity. When individuals or groups focus their efforts on converting members of a particular religion, in this case, Hindus, then it demonstrates a fundamental disregard for the Hindu faith. Conversion, especially when not based on personal conviction but rather on external persuasion or pressure, is not simply about sharing a different belief system. It is an attempt to undermine the values, traditions, and identity of the Hindu community. In this context, the Christian perpetrators specifically targeted Hindus, which suggests a lack of respect for Hinduism and its followers. Such actions are carried out to strip Hindu victims of their faith, making it a religiously motivated crime. The use of financial incentives to encourage Christian conversion clearly demonstrates that these actions were not motivated by kindness or charity. Instead, they were calculated attempts to exploit vulnerable Hindu women specifically because of their religion. By providing inducements to Hindus to change their faith, the Christian perpetrators were effectively emotionally blackmailing those vulnerable Hindus who might have been desperate for assistance. This form of coercion strips Hindus of their agency and dignity and enforces forced conversions. These are not random or isolated incidents, but rather are premeditated efforts to undermine the Hindu faith, persuade Hindus to discard their own faith, and convert to Christianity. Such acts are deeply rooted in religious animosity towards Hindu victims and their faith, making it a religiously motivated crime. The Christian perpetrators were also actively attempting to indoctrinate the Hindu victims by using Christian religious texts and pamphlets. Using the scriptures or literature of one faith to deliberately target and manipulate members of another, with the clear intention of religious conversion, represents a direct attack on the Hindu faith. Such actions are designed to violate and undermine the beliefs of Hindu victims and are clear indicators of religious hostility towards Hindus and their religious identity. Such actions further demonstrate that this was not an isolated incident of evangelism, but rather part of a broader, organised operation to further religious conversions. When Christian religious material is used to exploit trust, sow doubt, and misrepresent the beliefs of Hindus to coerce conversion, particularly in a systematic manner, it constitutes a religiously motivated offence. Beyond inducements and brainwashing, when the victims refused to convert, there was a concerted attempt by the Christian pastor to demean Hindu deities. By portraying Hindu traditions and deities as inferior, the perpetrator sought to create shame and doubt in the minds of the Hindu victims, breaking their spiritual ties to the Hindu faith. Hindu deities are highly revered by every practising Hindu. Any attempt to mock or denigrate them for the purpose of conversion demonstrates deep-seated religious animosity towards the Hindu faith. This makes it a religiously motivated crime. Reports also indicated that the accused had targeted not one but several Hindu women for conversions. This persistent pattern of targeting Hindus, luring them with incentives and subjecting them to psychological manipulation served as a stark example of a religiously motivated crime. Such actions are aimed at undermining the religious and cultural identity of Hindus through coercion, manipulation, and unlawful means. Such incidents highlighted that the conversions were neither isolated nor accidental but formed part of a calculated and targeted strategy to convert Hindus to Christianity. By focusing specifically on Hindus, the Christian evangelists were profiling vulnerable individuals and working systematically to erase their Hindu identity. These instances of targeted proselytisation activities stem from inherent hostility towards the victims' professed faith since Abrahamic faiths believe that any non-adherent to their faith is subject to being dehumanised till they convert, making it a religiously motivated crime against Hindus. Since this case meets multiple parameters of a religiously motivated attack against Hindus and their faith, it is being added to the hate crime database. Disclaimer: The media reports state that several Hindu women were targeted for conversion; however, they do not specify the total number of Hindu victims. The reports mention only 1 Hindu victim, specifically named Usha Devi. Therefore, for the purpose of documentation, a conservative estimate is used, and the victim count is recorded as '1'.
Victim Details
Total Victim
1
Deceased
0
Gender
- Male 0
- Female 1
- Third Gender 0
- Unknown 0
Caste
- SC/ST 0
- OBC 0
- General 0
- Unknown 1
Age Group
- Minor 0
- Adult 1
- Senior Citizen 0
- Unknown 0
Case Status
Case sub-judice
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Christian Extremists
Perpetrators Range
From 2 To 5
Perpetrators Gender
both
Sources 
