Hindu families targeted for conversion through inducements and denigration of Hindu deities by Christian pastor in Korba, Chhattisgarh
Korba, Chhattisgarh, India 
17 October, 2026
Case Summary
In the Ompur area of Korba district, Chhattisgarh, Hindu residents were targeted for Christian conversion by Pastor Pitambar Singh, who conducted prayer gatherings without permission. The accused offered inducements and denigrated Hindu deities in an attempt to convert Hindu residents to Christianity. According to reports, on 18 October 2026, an illegal prayer meeting was held at a private residence by Pastor Pitambar Singh, where members of the Hindu community were targeted for conversion. This prompted local villagers to inform Bajrang Dal activists. Subsequently, Bajrang Dal workers, including Rajgamar block co-ordinator Praveen Rathore, reached the residence. They protested the gathering after receiving information that Hindu families were attending the meetings and being encouraged to convert through financial inducements. Bajrang Dal block co-ordinator Praveen Rathore stated that Pastor Pitambar Singh, who came to Ompur from outside, had been conducting prayer meetings at the residence every Sunday. Rathore further stated that Hindu families were offered financial assistance and promised relief from illnesses through prayer. He also stated that derogatory remarks were made about Hindu deities during the meetings and that Hindu families had attended the gathering held the previous night. The organisation also revealed that a church was operating at the residence without permission. They demanded action over the prayer meetings and religious conversion activities. Police from Rajgamar police station arrived at the scene, pacified the protesters and detained Pastor Pitambar Singh and several other individuals for questioning. Outpost in-charge Vinod Singh stated that the complaint submitted by Bajrang Dal was being investigated, and police were recording statements from both parties and examining documents relating to the prayer meetings. Bajrang Dal district convenor Rana Mukherjee demanded an impartial investigation and appropriate action, warning that the organisation would launch a protest within constitutional limits if the authorities failed to act.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case is being added to the tracker under the primary category: Predatory Proselytisation. 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 sub-category selected here 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. The case involved the targeted religious proselytisation of Hindu families through financial inducements and promises of relief from illnesses. Pastor Pitambar Singh organised prayer meetings without permission to influence Hindu families to convert by offering financial assistance and assuring them that prayer would cure their illnesses. These methods went beyond ordinary religious preaching, as they involved using material assistance and health-related assurances to influence the religious choices of members of the Hindu community. What was presented as a simple prayer gathering inside a house was in reality a covert attempt at religious conversion. These were not genuine community prayers but calculated efforts to exploit the trust of Hindus and manipulate them into abandoning their faith. The pastor deliberately held the meeting in secrecy and without permission from the administration, indicating a deliberate and deceptive strategy designed to avoid public attention and scrutiny. By conducting such gatherings covertly, the Christian missionaries sought to manipulate vulnerable Hindus, taking advantage of their emotional and social circumstances to push them towards conversion. The offer of financial assistance was significant because economic inducements were used to exploit Hindu families for religious conversion. Offering incentives or making false promises, especially when directed at vulnerable individuals in need, shows that these incentives are not acts of kindness or charity. Instead, they are calculated moves to exploit vulnerable Hindus because of religion. By providing inducements or promising healing in exchange for conversion, the accused were effectively blackmailing those who might have been desperate for assistance or hope. Such instances are seen in many cases where members of Christian missionary groups target socially and economically vulnerable Hindus to further their agenda of religious conversions. This form of coercion strips people of their agency and dignity and results in coerced conversions. These are not random or isolated incidents, but rather cases deeply rooted in religious animosity towards Hindu victims. The derogatory remarks about Hindu deities added another dimension to the religious targeting. Hindu deities are central to Hindu belief and worship, and disparaging them in the context of efforts to convert Hindu families undermines the religious beliefs and identity of the community. Such remarks are designed to demean and undermine the faith of Hindus and intend to create an inferiority complex in the minds of the victims against their own faith. This fosters an environment of hostility and disrespect towards the Hindu community and Hindu deities. These acts of insulting Hinduism stem from Christian theology, which harbours disdain and hatred for polytheistic faiths, and which categorises Hindus as ‘polytheists’, thereby fostering hatred against them. Such actions make the religiously motivated nature of the crime even more evident. Taken together, the financial inducements, promises of healing and derogatory remarks about Hindu deities established clear indicators of religiously motivated targeting of Hindus. The conduct focused on influencing the religious identity of Hindu families while undermining their existing beliefs. These elements provide grounds for classifying the incident as a hate crime targeting Hindus on religious grounds.
Case Status
Complaint filed
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Christian Extremists
Perpetrators Range
One Person
Perpetrators Gender
male
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