Hindu women and children misled and Hindu gods denigrated; Christian evangelist carries out conversion activities under cover of a school
Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh, India 
27 September, 2025
Case Summary
In Rampur village of Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh, Hindu women were targeted for conversion under the guise of a prayer meeting by a Christian evangelist. The conversion activities were taking place inside a missionary school to disguise such illegal activities. According to reports, Hindu organisations, including Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Bajrang Dal and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, received information that illegal conversion activities were taking place at Jesus Junior High School in Gram Panchayat Damodara, Rampur, which created widespread panic in the area. When Hindu activists arrived at the school in large numbers, tensions escalated. Police also promptly arrived and took control of the situation. It was revealed that a prayer meeting was being conducted inside a room, where a large number of Hindu women were present. They were being brainwashed for religious conversion. During a search of the school premises and the room, police recovered Bibles, pictures of Jesus Christ, religious books, and craft materials, which confirmed that there was a conversion attempt. Furthermore, when Hindu activists asked some of the female attendees to chant the name of Shree Ram (a Hindu deity/god), they claimed that they didn’t know any god, indicating the level of brainwashing that was being done. Villagers reported that the school, previously known as Harinarayan Junior High School, was renamed to Jesus Junior High School about 25 years ago and that prayers to Jesus Christ were being conducted in the school for many years, with students being encouraged to convert to Christianity. Vishwa Hindu Parishad activist Anil Gautam submitted a written complaint to the Rampur police station demanding strict action. Based on the complaint, the police had initiated legal action, and the investigation was ongoing. As of the date of writing this report, the school operator was taken into custody for questioning.
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 - Proselytisation by grooming, brainwashing, manipulation or subtle indoctrination, with the tertiary category being - 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 sub-category 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. This case has been added to the tracker because Hindu females and children were targeted for conversion under the guise of a prayer meeting organised by a Christian evangelist. Prayer, often regarded by Hindus as a sacred and personal act, was here misused as bait for conversion rather than for genuine spiritual upliftment. The act of inviting Hindus to a prayer gathering, while simultaneously conducting conversion activities, showed that these meetings were not intended as sincere religious sessions or community worship. Instead, they were calculated efforts to exploit the trust and social cohesion within the Hindu community by disguising conversion attempts as routine gatherings. The participants were not invited to share in faith, but rather to be coerced into abandoning the religious beliefs that defined their identity and cultural heritage. This constituted a deliberate attempt to strip Hindus of their agency and religious freedom, making it a religiously motivated crime. In order to disguise their activities and not raise suspicion, the prayer meeting was being conducted inside a school on Sunday. This was done to avoid drawing attention, indicating a deliberate and deceptive strategy to manipulate Hindus and encourage them to abandon their faith. Vulnerable Hindus were targeted, exploiting their emotional, social, or religious sensitivities, which reflects malicious intent rooted in animosity towards Hinduism. When Hindu activists confronted the gathering and asked the female attendees to chant the name of Shree Ram, they refused, saying that they did not know any god. This indicated the extent of the brainwashing that had taken place, to the point that the victims denied knowledge of their own deities. In many such cases, Christian preachers deliberately denigrate Hinduism to make Hindus feel inferior about their own faith, gradually leading them to reject their traditions and deities. This fosters an environment of hostility and disrespect towards Hindus and their gods. These acts of undermining Hinduism stem from Christian theological disdain for polytheistic traditions, wherein Hindus are labelled as “idolaters” or “polytheists,” fuelling a narrative of hatred against them. Such theological hostility reinforces the religiously motivated nature of this crime. Villagers also stated that students of the school were encouraged to convert to Christianity. Given that it was a high school, it is highly likely that minor Hindu children were exposed to such influence. Since some of the victims were minors, the element of consent and genuine change of conscience was missing ab initio. Minors, due to their young age and lack of maturity, are particularly vulnerable to manipulation and coercion. They may not have the ability to fully understand the implications of converting to another religion, and the Christian perpetrator purposely targeted and exploited this vulnerability of the victim. Since this case exemplifies the use of coercion and manipulation to achieve religious conversion, it is a blatant act of religious hate, which is why it has been documented here in the hate tracker. During a search of the school premises, police recovered Bibles, pictures of Jesus Christ, religious books, and craft materials. 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. The nature of the conversion drive and its impact on the Hindu community revealed that this was a targeted action against Hindus as a collective group. When individuals or organisations concentrate their efforts on converting members of one religious community, as in this case, it reflects a fundamental disregard for that faith and its practitioners. Conversion, when brought about through external persuasion, manipulation or pressure, is not merely a matter of offering a new belief system but an attempt to dismantle the traditions, identity, and values of the targeted community. Here, Hindus were deliberately chosen as the focus of conversion attempts, underscoring the lack of respect for their faith and marking the incident as a religiously motivated crime. The Christian faith, by its very theological foundations, places a strong emphasis on proselytisation. In pursuit of conversion objectives, Christian evangelists often employ unethical means, ranging from psychological pressure and misinformation to inducements. In such cases, Christian missionary groups often target and brainwash socially and economically vulnerable Hindus to further their agenda of religious conversions. This form of coercion strips Hindus of their agency and dignity and enforces forced conversions. These are not random or isolated incidents, but rather premeditated efforts to undermine the Hindu faith, persuade Hindus to discard their own faith, and convert to Christianity. Such acts were deeply rooted in religious animosity towards Hindu victims, and thus, this case was added to the tracker. Disclaimer - Hinduphobia Tracker records incidents based on when the victim’s ordeal began, rather than when the case was later reported in the media. In this case, none of the media sources has specified the exact date when the conversion activities inside the school first began. Therefore, the date recorded for this incident is 28 September 2025, the day Hindu activists and police raided the premises, the earliest confirmed date available.
Case Status
Complaint filed
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Christian Extremists
Perpetrators Range
One Person
Perpetrators Gender
male
Sources 
