Bid to convert 350 people to Christianity foiled in Rajasthan's Bharatpur, missionaries were luring Hindu women by offering them money

Case ID : a4aec4d | Location : Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India | Date of Incident : Sat, 10 February, 2024

Case ID : a4aec4d

Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India

10 February, 2024

Bid to convert 350 people to Christianity foiled in Rajasthan's Bharatpur, missionaries were luring Hindu women by offering them money

Predatory Proselytisation

Conversion/ attempts to convert by inducement

Case Summary

In Bharatpur, Rajasthan, Christian missionaries were attempting to convert hundreds of people to Christianity by organising a prayer meeting at a hotel on February 11th. Hindu organizations protested, leading to the interrogation and custody of some individuals. These organizations revealed that those associated with Christian missionaries gave Rs 500-500 to Hindu women to attend the prayer meeting where they were brainwashed to convert to Christianity. In addition, these people were offering to deposit Rs 40-50 thousand in the bank accounts of those converting to Christianity. Hundreds gathered for a prayer meeting at a hotel, prompting Hindu groups to intervene, resulting in clashes. Police intervened and took 20 individuals linked to Christian missionaries into custody.

Why it is Hate Crime ?

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 Christian missionaries in this instance coerced the Hindus into renunciating their professed faith, which is a direct result of their doctrinal and intrinsic animosity against Hinduism. Above all, they used the promise of financial gain to entice the victims, who were Hindu and came from marginalised families, to convert. Due to these specific facts, the case fits into the hate tracker's core category of 'predatory proselytization' and qualifies under the subcategory of 'conversion by inducement.'