Hindus lured into Christian conversion under the pretext of 'prayer meetings'
Alirajpur, Madhya Pradesh, India 
20 March, 2025
Case Summary
In Alirajpur, Madhya Pradesh, a Christian prayer meeting was held where efforts were made to lure Hindus into converting to Christianity. According to media reports, the gathering took place at the residence of Kunwar Singh Bhangda, with 4-5 attendees. During the event, Christian activities were promoted, and attempts were made to persuade Hindus to embrace Christianity. Two local residents Rohit and Akash informed the police about these alleged conversion efforts. They were joined by MLA representative Dilip Chauhan and BJP Mandal President Giriraj Modi, who urged the authorities to take action and investigate the matter. Upon receiving the complaint, the police arrived at the scene and arrested two individuals, identified as Chhagan and Kunwar Singh. Several books related to religious conversion were also recovered from them. Following their arrest, they were taken into custody and sent to jail. Police station in-charge Sonu Shitole stated, "As soon as we received information about the incident, a police team was dispatched to the location. Books related to Christian conversion were recovered, and a case was registered against the accused." Incidents of illegal conversions in Madhya Pradesh are not new. On 12th January 2025, a similar gathering took place in Multai, where Hindus were reportedly lured into adopting Christianity. Hindu organisations protested the event, leading to the police apprehending 8-10 individuals involved in the illegal conversion activities.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
The case has been added to the tracker under the prime category of- Predatory proselytisation. Under this, the sub-category selected is- Proselytisation by brainwashing, manipulation or subtle indoctrination. Within this, 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. Here, the use of a prayer gathering as a cover suggests that the individual involved may have been using indirect methods to lure or convince individuals into conversion, possibly targeting vulnerable individuals by exploiting their emotional, social, or religious needs. Further, the recovery of books related to Christian conversion solidifies the allegations that Hindus were being brainwashed and manipulated into converting to Christianity. The entire operation, from luring poor Hindus under false pretences to attempting to convert them, in fact, points to a clear pattern of predatory proselytisation. The deliberate targeting of vulnerable Hindus for conversion using manipulation and deceit makes this a religiously motivated act, warranting its inclusion in the tracker.
Victim Details
Total Victim
5
Deceased
0
Gender
- Male 0
- Female 0
- Third Gender 0
- Unknown 5
Caste
- SC/ST 0
- OBC 0
- General 0
- Unknown 5
Age Group
- Minor 0
- Adult 0
- Senior Citizen 0
- Unknown 5
Case Status
Arrested
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Christian Extremists
Perpetrators Range
From 2 To 5
Perpetrators Gender
male
Sources 
