Hindu man, along with his wife, pressured and threatened for religious conversion by his Christian mother

Case ID : 30a7818 | Location : Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, India | Date of Incident : Mon, 30 March, 2026

Case ID : 30a7818

Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, India

30 March, 2026

Hindu man, along with his wife, pressured and threatened for religious conversion by his Christian mother

Predatory Proselytisation

Harassment, threats, coercion for conversion

Case Summary

In the Harpur-Budhat police station area of Gorakhpur district, a Hindu man named Deepak Shukla, along with his wife, was pressured and threatened for religious conversion by his Christian mother. The Hindu victim, Deepak Shukla, son of late Radheshyam Shukla and a resident of Gram Panchayat Harpur, stated in his police complaint that his mother had renounced Hinduism and converted to Christianity approximately seven years earlier. During that time, she also facilitated the conversion of her niece. Over the years, she gradually began compelling her son and his wife, Sandhya Shukla, to abandon their Hindu faith and adopt Christianity. Deepak described a pattern of persistent psychological and social pressure within the household, where, when they refused to convert, his mother began threatening to expel him from the house and deprive him of his ancestral property. The situation escalated to such an extent that Deepak, along with his wife and children, was forced to leave the village residence and relocate to a rented accommodation in the GIDA area (Gorakhpur Industrial Development Authority) for safety and stability. The victim's family stated they did not want to abandon their traditional culture and religion, but the threats they received at home have left them mentally broken. Subsequently, Deepak appealed to the government and local administration to free him from this illegal pressure and ensure the safety of his family, following which the Harpur-Budhat police initiated an investigation into the matter. Officials stated that the case was being examined with seriousness, and further legal action would be determined based on the investigation.

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- Harassment, threats, coercion for conversion. Harassment covers a wide range of behaviours of an offensive nature. It is commonly understood as behaviour that demeans, humiliates, and intimidates a person, including threats and coercion. Harassment and threats, in this case, find their root on discriminatory grounds which has the effect of nullifying a person’s rights or infringing upon his freedom to exercise his right specifically owing to the victim’s religious identity. Verbal and physical threats and psychological or physical harassment are often used against Hindu victims because they choose to practice their professed religion. Religious harassment also includes forced and involuntary conversions by harassment, threats or coercion. Coercion includes intimidatory tactics like force-feeding a Hindu victim beef to convert to another religion, forceful circumcision etc. In several cases documented, non-Hindu perpetrators or those who harbour specific animosity towards Hinduism, harass victims simply based on their religious identity. Such cases often also include harassment to ensure the Hindu victim abandons his/her professed religion and adopts the religion of the perpetrator. Such cases where Hindu victims are harassed to convert to the perpetrator’s religion are rooted in animosity towards the victim’s religious identity and are therefore documented as religiously motivated hate crimes. This case was added to the tracker because a Hindu man, Deepak Shukla, along with his wife, was subjected to sustained pressure and threats for religious conversion by his Christian mother in Gorakhpur district. The incident demonstrated a sustained and deliberate attempt by the victim’s mother to coerce the Hindu victims into renouncing their faith and converting to Christianity. The pressure was not occasional or incidental but persistent in nature, with the mother repeatedly urging and compelling her son and his wife to abandon their religious beliefs and adopt Christianity. Such conduct went beyond a matter of personal belief or familial disagreement and amounted to continuous psychological and social pressure within the household. Pressuring Hindu individuals to discard their religious faith and embrace another was a direct attack on their religious identity and dignity. It was not a matter of personal choice; it was coercion rooted in hostility towards the victim's Hindu identity. Such an attempt reflects religious animosity because the act was not simply about personal differences but about erasing the victim’s Hindu faith, making it a religiously motivated crime. Despite the Hindu victim explicitly refusing to convert, the victim and his family continued to face persistent pressure. When they resisted, the accused escalated the situation by threatening eviction from the ancestral home and deprivation of property rights. This demonstrated that the coercion was not limited to persuasion but extended to intimidation and material threats. The victim clearly expressed his intention to continue practising his faith, yet the pressure and threats persisted, reinforcing the coercive nature of the act and the absence of genuine consent. The Christian faith, by its very theological foundations, places a strong emphasis on proselytisation. In pursuit of conversion objectives, Christian evangelists and individuals often employ unethical means, ranging from psychological pressure and misinformation to inducements such as money or jobs. 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 This systematic attempt to erode the religious foundation of individuals and replace it with allegiance to another faith reflects deep religious malice and animus against the Hindu identity. Because the core motivation of the act stems from hostility toward the victim’s religion, it meets the threshold of a hate crime. Hence, categorised as a hate crime in the database. Disclaimer: The Hinduphobia Tracker records incidents based on when an event occurred or when the victim's ordeal began. It is important to clarify that the report does not specify the exact date when the accused began pressuring her son to convert. Therefore, for documentation purposes, we have recorded the date based on when the media reported the incident, 31 March 2026.