Hindus lured with inducements, indoctrinated with Christian texts, and forced to convert to Christianity under pretext of ‘exorcism’

Case ID : 323458b | Location : Azamgarh, Uttar Pradesh, India | Date of Incident : Wed, 11 October, 2023

Case ID : 323458b

Azamgarh, Uttar Pradesh, India

11 October, 2023

Hindus lured with inducements, indoctrinated with Christian texts, and forced to convert to Christianity under pretext of ‘exorcism’

Predatory Proselytisation

Conversion/ attempts to convert by inducement

Proselytisation by grooming, brainwashing, manipulation or subtle indoctrination

Pattern of targeting Hindus

Case Summary

In Singhwara Khas village, Maharajganj police station area, Azamgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Hindus were targeted for forced conversion to Christianity. The victims were offered inducements, indoctrinated with Christianity, and manipulated under the guise of ‘exorcism’ from ghosts and spirits. The accused had targeted more than 100 Hindus, including both men and women. According to media reports, the incident came to light when a Hindu man named Anshul Kumar, a resident of Mahrupur village, filed a complaint at Maharajganj police station, stating that certain Christians had lured him into converting to Christianity during a satsang (religious meeting). A criminal case had been filed against six individuals, and three had been arrested. The victim stated that the Christian perpetrators, namely Suryabhan Sharma, a resident of Singhwara Khas village, his wife Nirmala Sharma, and son Ankit Sharma (also known as Aman Sharma), were present at the satsang (prayer meeting). Rampyare Gaur, a resident of Raghunathpur, and his wife Sunita were also present and were conducting the programme. Another man named Ankit Sharma, a resident of Atardiha village, under the jurisdiction of the Mubarakpur police station, was also involved in the conversion activity. During the prayer meeting, the Hindu participants were told that if they converted to Christianity, they would receive free medical treatment and education in Christian‑affiliated schools and hospitals. Anshul Kumar stated in his complaint that he had attended the gathering several times but did not succumb to the conversion inducements. Several men and women from the village had been present at the gathering. The applicant demanded that the police take appropriate action in this matter. The victim further stated that the accused brainwashed people with Christianity by telling them, “Jesus Christ would be the only solution to all their problems.” The accused were also attempting to force people to convert under the pretext of performing exorcisms. Anshul said that the accused had been targeting him for conversion since 2022-2023. He stated that when he arrived at the location on Sunday, 12th October 2025, hundreds of men and women were present and were being lured and induced to convert. The Inspector‑in‑Charge of Maharajganj police station stated that a case had been filed against six individuals, and three had been arrested. Those arrested were Nirmala Sharma, Aman Sharma, and Ankit Sharma, all residents of Atardiha village. Chirag Jain, Superintendent of Police, Rural Azamgarh, said: “A complaint was received at the Maharajganj police station stating that Suryabhan Sharma, a resident of Singhwara Khas village, was luring people to convert. Based on the complaint, a case was filed against six people, and three were arrested. Further action will be taken after investigation.” In the matter, the police registered a case against six individuals under the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Religious Conversion Act, 2021. Utkarsh Singh, District Coordinator of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad Cow Protection Department in Azamgarh, said that the organisation’s workers had been receiving information about religious conversion activities in Singhwara Khas village for many days. The police were informed, and upon reaching the spot, confirmed that religious conversion activities were taking place. In the presence of police personnel, Christian religious texts, including the Bible and other conversion material, were found. Action was being taken by the police in this matter.

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 inducements. 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 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 case in Singhwara Khas village, Azamgarh, Uttar Pradesh, represented a clear instance of a hate crime against Hindus. The accused had specifically targeted Hindu villagers by offering inducements such as free medical treatment and education in Christian‑affiliated schools. Such inducements were not acts of goodwill or humanitarian assistance; rather, they were carefully designed instruments of coercion. By exploiting the economic vulnerability of the poor Hindus, the perpetrators coerced the victims into converting to Christianity. Conversion carried out through external persuasion, inducements, manipulation, or force cannot be considered a genuine change of faith, but an act of coercion and force motivated by religious animosity. The deliberate misuse of basic human needs like healthcare and education to attract and convert Hindus reflects an intention rooted in prejudice and anti‑Hindu hostility. The Hindu victims were also psychologically targeted through manipulation and indoctrination. The accused propagated Christian doctrines portraying Jesus Christ as the sole path to salvation and the only solution to all life’s problems, thereby aiming to undermine the victims’ native faith, Hinduism. This religious indoctrination exploited superstition and fear, particularly through the performance of fake “exorcisms” under the pretext of freeing people from ghosts and spirits. Such deceitful methods were deliberately used to weaken the Hindus’ religious and spiritual conviction, replacing it with a psychologically induced dependence on Christian belief systems. The manipulation of vulnerable minds through such tactics highlights a planned and deceitful method of conversion under the guise of spiritual welfare. In addition to the use of psychological manipulation, the perpetrators also employed Christian scriptures and conversion materials, including the Bible, which were discovered at the site. The deliberate use of religious texts to coerce, manipulate, and brainwash members of another faith represents an attempt to sow confusion and misinformation among Hindus. By pushing Christian doctrine through deceit and pressure, the accused attempted to fracture the religious integrity of the Hindu community. These acts demonstrated deep‑seated religious animosity, as the perpetrators used faith not as a source of service but as a weapon of conversion. One of the victims, Anshul Kumar, stated that the accused had been targeting him for conversion since 2022. He further reported that on 12th October 2025, more than one hundred individuals were being persuaded and coerced to convert to Christianity. This continuity showed that the conversion efforts were not spontaneous but systematic and long‑term. The persistent attempts to target Hindus highlighted that this was a sustained and premeditated campaign aimed at eroding Hindu religious identity. It revealed a calculated, organised, and communal effort to strip Hindu victims of their ancestral faith over an extended period, demonstrating a clear religious motive behind the acts. 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 of the Hinduphobia Tracker. Disclaimer: The Hinduphobia Tracker records incidents based on when the crime occurred rather than the date of media reporting. In this case, the media sources noted the most recent forced conversion by the accused took place on 12th October 2025. One of the victims, Anshul Kumar, stated that coercive conversion attempts towards him began around 2022-2023. Accordingly, for documentation purposes, the Tracker is using an indicative start date of 12th October 2022 to reflect when the crime began, rather than relying solely on the date it was published by the media. Media reports stated that more than 100 Hindus were targeted for coerced conversion to Christianity in this case. However, the exact number of victims was not specified. Therefore, for documentation purposes, the Hinduphobia Tracker is taking a conservative estimate and recording the victim count as 100. Media reports do not provide any gender-wise breakdown of the victims. For documentation clarity, the Hinduphobia Tracker has applied a proportional demographic estimate based on India’s Census 2011 and National Family Health Survey‑5 (2019–21) rural population data. Accordingly, the 100 participants are estimated as 50 men (50%) and 50 women (50%), reflecting typical adult rural participation.