Hindu youth offered money to convert to Christianity, beaten brutally after he refuses

Case ID : 5954954 | Location : Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh, India | Date of Incident : Tue, 19 November, 2024
Case ID : 5954954
location Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh, India
date 19 November, 2024
Hindu youth offered money to convert to Christianity, beaten brutally after he refuses
Attack not resulting in death
Attacked for refusal to convert
Predatory Proselytisation
Conversion/ attempts to convert by inducement

Case Summary

A Hindu youth, Rajesh Chauhan, has lodged a formal complaint against nine individuals, including four identified persons and five unknown assailants. According to his statement, the accused attempted to forcibly convert him to Christianity. When he resisted their demands, they resorted to physical assault, further intensifying the coercion. The four known accused were identified as Akhilesh Chauhan, Arjun Chauhan, Rita and Sunita, residing in the same village as the victim. The complaint read that the accused offered Rs 1 Lakh to the victim to lure him into conversion. When the victim refused to accede to their conversion demands, the accused entered his house and assaulted him, leaving him severely injured. As soon as the video of the victim narrating his ordeal went viral on social media, there was a stir among Hindu organizations on Saturday. People from VHP, Bajrang Dal, Gau Raksha, BJP and other Hindu organizations reached the spot. The injured Rajesh was taken to the police station, where the police registered a case and initiated action against the accused.

Why it is Hate Crime ?

This case has been categorised as a hate crime and added to the database under two prime categories. The first is- Predatory Proselytisation. Within this, the sub-category 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 second category under which this case has been placed, based on case details is- Attack not resulting in death. Within this, the sub-category selected is- Attacked for refusal to convert. When there is pressure, threat or coercion employed upon the Hindu victim to convert to a different religion, in several cases, the victim refuses to succumb to the pressure/threats. Once the victim refuses, the perpetrator proceeds to attack/assault the victim owing to his/her refusal to convert. In such cases, the pressure/threat/intimidation/coercion/violence itself is driven by animosity towards the victim’s Hindu faith. The violence then is another hate crime driven by the victim’s refusal to abandon his professed faith, Hinduism, and convert to the religion of a non-Hindu perpetrator. Since the victim’s faith is at the heart of the pressure to convert and the ensuing violence towards the victim, such cases are considered religiously motivated hate crimes. Here, the Christian evangelists, at first tried to lure the Hindu-Dalit youth into conversion by offering him a lucrative sum of Rs 1 lakh. The use of inducements to convert individuals is indeed a common tactic in efforts to influence or manipulate vulnerable individuals into changing their faith. This approach often targets economically disadvantaged groups, offering material benefits such as food and/or money in exchange for conversion. It creates a form of dependency that can alienate individuals from their original faith, as they may feel compelled to convert not out of genuine belief but due to immediate needs or financial pressures. Here too, the Christian evangelists adopted a similar tactic of exploiting the vulnerability of the Hindu to convert him to Christianity. However, when the Hindu youth rejected the offer and refused to accede to the conversion demands, the accused beat him up. This case constitutes a religiously motivated hate crime as such actions are driven by intolerance towards the victim's religious identity and aim to coerce him into abandoning his faith, often accompanied by threats, violence, or other forms of intimidation. In this case, the pressure to convert and the subsequent assault clearly indicate a targeted action against the victim because of his religion. Consequently, the case has been categorised as a hate crime and added to the database.

Victim Details

Total Victim

1

Deceased

0


Gender

  • Male 1
  • Female 0
  • Third Gender 0
  • Unknown 0

Caste

  • SC/ST 1
  • OBC 0
  • General 0
  • Unknown 0

Age Group

  • Minor 0
  • Adult 1
  • Senior Citizen 0
  • Unknown 0
Case Status Background
Gavel Icon

Case Status


Complaint filed

Case Status Background
Gavel Icon

Perpetrators Details

Perpetrators


Christian Extremists

Perpetrators Range


From 5 to 10

Perpetrators Gender


both

Case Details SVG
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