Hindu villagers lured to attend religious gathering, targeted for forced conversion by Christian missionaries in Jharkhand
Bokaro, Jharkhand, India 
23 December, 2025
Case Summary
In the Kala Pathar (Patharkatta) village of Bokaro district, Jharkhand, Dalit and tribal Hindu villagers were targeted for forced conversion under the guise of a religious gathering by Christian missionaries. The Christian missionary members comprised nearly 150 members. According to reports, on 24th December 2025, around 2 pm, Christian missionaries had arrived in the village and were conducting a religious gathering near the residence of Bhola Bauri, using loudspeakers. During this time, Dalit and tribal Hindu villagers were encouraged to abandon their faith and convert to Christianity. As word spread around the village, villagers assembled at the site and objected to the religious gathering. The villagers began to protest, escalating tensions in the area, after which the Christian missionaries began to disperse and fled the area. Members of the Bajrang Dal and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, two Hindu organisations, reached the Chas Mufassil police station after being informed of the incident and submitted applications seeking action, asserting that such activities threatened social harmony and welfare entitlements of vulnerable Hindu communities. Local residents, including Devraj Pandey and Ramesh Bauri, also filed written complaints detailing the sequence of events. As of the date of writing this report, the investigation is ongoing.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case has been documented under the primary category: Predatory Proselytisation. Under this, the secondary category selected is: Proselytisation by grooming, brainwashing, manipulation or subtle indoctrination. 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. This case has been added to the tracker because Dalit and tribal Hindu villagers were lured for conversion under the guise of a religious gathering by Christian missionaries. What was presented as a routine prayer gathering, in substance, was an organised attempt aimed at religious conversion. The programme was conducted near a private residence and framed as a religious meeting, but its content and manner revealed an effort to persuade Dalit and tribal Hindu villagers to abandon their faith and embrace Christianity. The use of loudspeakers and the presence of individuals from outside the village indicated that this was not an organic community prayer but a planned intervention aimed at influencing local Hindu residents to abandon their faith and convert to Christianity. The gathering was held without prior intimation or permission from the administration, suggesting a conscious attempt to operate discreetly and avoid oversight. The manner in which the programme was organised and the specific focus on tribal and Dalit Hindu villagers demonstrated a targeted approach towards a particular religious community. When individuals or groups focus their efforts on converting members of a particular religion, in this case, Hindus, then it demonstrates a fundamental disregard for the Hindu faith. Conversion, especially when not based on personal conviction but rather on external persuasion or pressure, was not simply about sharing a different belief system. It was an attempt to undermine the values, traditions, and identity of the Hindu community. In this context, the Christian perpetrators specifically targeted Hindus, which demonstrates a lack of respect for Hinduism and its followers. Such actions are carried out to strip Hindu victims of their faith, making it 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 such as money or jobs. Since the perpetrator's actions were motivated by religious animosity, this case has been added to the hate crime database of the Hinduphobia Tracker.
Case Status
Complaint filed
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Christian Extremists
Perpetrators Range
From 10 to 100
Perpetrators Gender
unknown
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