Hindus targeted for Christian conversion under pretext of prayer meeting; Hindu activists subjected to physical assault and abuse for opposing conversions
Durg, Chhattisgarh, India 
13 September, 2025
Case Summary
In Durg, Chhattisgarh, Hindus were targeted for Christian conversion by evangelists under the guise of attending prayer meetings. This led to a clash between Hindu activists and the Christian accused, during which Hindus were assaulted. Even the clothes of the Hindu female activists were torn by the Christian accused. According to media reports, a prayer meeting was being held on 14th September 2025 by the Christian evangelists at the residence of a Christian man named John Jorthan in the Padmanabhpur police station area of the Durg district. Hindu workers of Bajrang Dal came to know that conversion activities were taking place there. A large number of Hindu activists, including women, then reached the spot. The Bajrang Dal activists began protesting the unauthorised conversions by reciting Hanuman Chalisa and singing bhajans in front of the house. As a result, they were subjected to abuse by the Christian accused. This escalated into a communal clash between Hindu activists and the Christian group. The police personnel took John Jorthan to the police station in a car. During this, Bajrang Dal activists attempted to beat him, stating that he had torn the clothes of their women activists and had misbehaved with them. Amidst the commotion, a scuffle also broke out between the police and the Bajrang Dal activists. When the police reached Pulgaon police station with John Jorthan, members of the Bhim Army, an Ambedkarite anti-Hindu group, also arrived and began raising slogans in support of the Christian accused. They demanded that if the police were taking action against John, similar action should be taken against Bajrang Dal activists as well. The dispute that began in the morning continued into the evening. Members of the Bhim Army and the Christian community kept shouting slogans and remained stationed at the main gate of the police station. The police later released John Jorthan on bail. After his release, members of the Bhim Army, along with the Christian community, accused the police of unfairly targeting the Christian community. Jyoti Sharma, a worker of Chhattisgarh Bajrang Dal, stated that the accused, John, was continuously active in such conversion activities and that he received funding from outside. Sharma demanded that John be expelled from the district and that his bank details be investigated. He warned that if this did not happen, Bajrang Dal would launch a fierce agitation. Bajrang Dal members added that they had been informed of the meeting by local residents, after which their workers reached the spot. Additional Superintendent of Police of Durg city, Sukhnandan Rathore, said that the police had received information about the prayer meeting. On reaching the spot, members of Bajrang Dal and the Christian community were found fighting with each other, due to which a law-and-order situation arose. He added that both parties had been counselled and that the investigation of the case was ongoing.
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- 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. Another primary category selected is- Attack not resulting in death. Within this, the subcategory selected is- Attacked for opposing radicals or trying to save the victim. In several cases, Hindus are attacked for opposing religiously motivated crimes being committed against a fellow Hindu or simply for voicing an opinion opposing radical elements, who either have in the past or continue to persecute Hindus. In such cases, the initial attack against the victim, against which the Hindu was trying to defend the victim, would also need to be classified as a religiously motivated hate crime. Since the initial crime itself was religiously motivated and the subsequent crime of attempting to save the victim or speaking against the radical elements ends up inviting a violent attack, it would also be classified as a religiously motivated hate crime under this category. The other subcategory selected is- Communal Clash/Attack. Communal clash is a form of collective violence that involves clashes between groups belonging to different religious identities. For a communal clash between Hindus and non-Hindus to qualify as a religiously motivated hate crime, the trigger of the violence itself would have to be anti-Hindu in essence. For example, if there is a Hindu religious procession that comes under attack from a non-Hindu mob and after the initial attack, Hindus retaliate in self-defence, leading to a communal clash between the two religious communities. While at a later stage, both communities are involved in the clash/violence, the initial trigger of the violence was by the non-Hindu mob against the Hindus and therefore, it could safely be termed as an anti-Hindu violence. Further, the trigger would also have to be religiously motivated. In the cited example, the attack by the non-Hindu mob was against religious processions and therefore, can be concluded to be religiously motivated. In some cases, the trigger may be non-religious, however, it develops into religious violence against Hindus at a later stage. In such cases too, the foundational animosity towards Hindus becomes the motivating factor of the crime and therefore, it would be classified as a religiously motivated hate crime against Hindus under this category. In this case, Hindus were selectively targeted for Christian conversion by the Christian perpetrators under the pretext of attending a prayer meeting. The nature of these conversion attempts and their broader impact on the Hindu community clearly indicate a targeted campaign against Hindus as a group. When individuals or organisations focus their efforts solely on converting members of a particular faith, here, Hindus, it displays a fundamental disregard for Hinduism. Conversion efforts that hinge on persuasion, pressure or inducements, rather than genuine conviction, are not simply the sharing of beliefs; they are a direct attempt to undermine the values, traditions, and identity of the Hindu community. In this case, it is evident that the Christian perpetrators deliberately targeted Hindus, which illustrates a lack of respect for their faith and practices, making it a religiously motivated hate crime. The Hindus were lured to convert under the pretext of a prayer meeting. Prayer, often seen as a sacred and private act amongst Hindus, was misused here as bait for conversion rather than for genuine spiritual upliftment. The participants were not invited to share in faith, but rather to be coerced into abandoning the religious beliefs that defined their identity and cultural heritage. This manipulation was a calculated attempt to strip Hindus of their agency and religious freedom, making it a religiously motivated crime. Furthermore, Hindu activists revealed that these conversion gatherings had been occurring for a long time, indicating a premeditated and well-planned operation rather than a sporadic or isolated occurrence. The repetitive targeting of vulnerable Hindus was not just a result of random missionary zeal, but a systematic campaign calculated to whittle away the Hindu presence in the community. This makes the religious motivations behind the perpetrators' actions even more evident. Furthermore, when the Hindu activists went to stop the proselytisation and opposed it peacefully, they were subjected to abuse by the Christian accused and his accomplices. Hindu women activists were also assaulted, and their clothes were torn by the Christians. This led to a clash between Hindus and Christians. Such acts of targeting and attacking Hindus for simply opposing the conversion of their people, and subjecting women to assault and humiliation, demonstrated targeted violence against the Hindu community. These instances were intended to silence Hindu activists and prevent them from speaking out against forced conversions. Such communal attacks against Hindus are a result of deep-seated hostility towards the Hindu community and their faith, making it a religiously motivated crime. 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, it is being added to the hate crime database. Disclaimer: Media reports do not specify the total number of Christian perpetrators alongside the main Christian accused, John Jorthan. Therefore, for documentation purposes, the perpetrator count is recorded as "1", referring to John alone.
Case Status
Perpatrator released by Police
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Christian Extremists
Perpetrators Range
One Person
Perpetrators Gender
male
Sources 
