Hindu villagers, including children, targeted and offered inducements for conversion; asked to abandon Hindu deities

Case ID : b1c5c53 | Location : Kumher, Rajasthan, India | Date of Incident : Sat, 4 October, 2025

Case ID : b1c5c53

Kumher, Rajasthan, India

4 October, 2025

Hindu villagers, including children, targeted and offered inducements for conversion; asked to abandon Hindu deities

Predatory Proselytisation

Conversion/ attempts to convert by inducement

Attempting to convert/converting by denigrating Hinduism

Proselytisation by grooming, brainwashing, manipulation or subtle indoctrination

Pattern of targeting Hindus

Case Summary

In the Kumher town of Deeg district, Rajasthan, approximately 200 Hindu villagers, including women and children, were targeted for conversion by followers of Kabirpanth. The perpetrators denigrated Hinduism while simultaneously singing praises of Sant Rampal. According to reports, religious conversion activities were taking place at the Kumher resort, where a prayer meeting was organised on Sunday, singing praises of Sant Rampal and Kabirpanth. The perpetrators lured Hindus through various forms of inducements and allurements. Upon receiving information, activists from the Hindu organisations Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal arrived at the site and found a gathering of around 200 people, including elderly men, women, and children. Literature critical of Hindu gods and goddesses was recovered at the site, containing instructions to abandon worship of Hindu deities and to follow Kabir as the Supreme God. The attendees had come to listen to the sermons of Baba Rampal, a follower of Kabir who has been in jail since 2014. When the activists arrived, chaos erupted as some participants attempted to leave, while the Hindu activists asked them to remain outside until the police arrived, explaining the purpose of their intervention. Meanwhile, one of the accused fled the scene. Hindu activists also stated that a person named Ravi, who had been given prior warning for carrying out illegal conversion, was involved in these activities. The police arrived at the scene and detained two individuals while launching an investigation into the activities at the resort. It is important to note that Sant Rampal, on whose name participants were being asked to abandon Hinduism and convert, has faced multiple legal cases and has been imprisoned.

Why it is Hate Crime ?

The case has been added to the tracker under the prime category- Predatory proselytisation. Under 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 other subcategory selected is- Attempting to convert/ converting by denigrating Hinduism. In several cases, Hindus are converted or an attempt is made to convert Hindus by denigrating their faith, Hinduism. In such cases, the Hindus associate with the non-Hindu perpetrators often by choice and then, the attempt to convert them by insulting their faith, showing the faith down etc begins. An example of this would be a non-Hindu gathering where the Hindus are attending the gathering of their own free will. However, once they attend the gathering, there is an explicit attempt to convert them by abusing their faith and hailing the faith of the perpetrator. The denigration of the Hindu faith is often based on misrepresentation of the Hindu faith, its doctrine and scriptures and insult to espoused traditions if not blatant lies about Hindu beliefs and ways. Such conversions or attempts at conversions are driven by animosity towards the Hindu faith and are therefore documented as religiously motivated hate crimes. The other subcategory selected is- Proselytisation by grooming, brainwashing, manipulation, or subtle indoctrination. The tertiary category selected is- Pattern of targeting Hindus and Conversion of Minor. 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 constitutes a religiously motivated hate crime, as Hindu villagers, including women and children, were targeted for conversion under the guise of a prayer meeting by followers of Kabirpant and Sant Rampal. What was presented as a simple prayer gathering at a resort was in reality a covert attempt at religious conversion, where videos of sermons of Sant Rampal were played in an effort to brainwash people towards conversion. These were not genuine devotional gatherings but calculated efforts to exploit the trust of Hindus and manipulate them into abandoning their faith. The organisers deliberately held the meeting without prior permission and in secrecy, indicating a deliberate and deceptive strategy designed to avoid public attention and scrutiny. By conducting such gatherings covertly, the perpetrators sought to manipulate vulnerable Hindus, taking advantage of their emotional and social circumstances to push them towards conversion. Furthermore, the perpetrators lured people for conversion through various forms of inducements and allurements. Offering incentives or making false promises, particularly to elderly or socially vulnerable individuals, shows that these offers were not acts of kindness or charity. Instead, they were calculated moves to exploit Hindus because of their faith and social circumstances. By promising guidance, spiritual benefits, or other inducements in exchange for abandoning Hinduism, the perpetrators were effectively blackmailing Hindus into abandoning their faith. Such instances demonstrate a systematic effort to target socially and economically vulnerable Hindus to further the agenda of religious conversions. This form of coercion strips people of their agency and dignity and results in coerced conversions. These are not random or isolated incidents, but rather cases deeply rooted in religious animosity towards Hindu victims. The perpetrators also denigrated and misled attendees against Hinduism and Hindu gods and goddesses. This went beyond religious discussion or proselytisation; it constituted an act of incitement and insult directed at the core beliefs of the Hindu community. The material recovered at the resort instructed attendees to abandon Hindu worship and follow Kabir exclusively, abandon idol worship and puja of Hindu deities. This was aimed at undermining the Hindu faith and creating confusion and doubt among the victims. Such acts foster an environment of hostility and disrespect towards Hindu beliefs and traditions, making the religiously motivated nature of the crime evident. The perpetrators actively attempted to indoctrinate the Hindu victims by using Kabirpanth literature and sermons. Using the scriptures or teachings of one faith to deliberately target and manipulate members of another, with the clear intention of religious conversion, represents a direct attack on the Hindu faith. These actions were designed to violate and undermine the beliefs of Hindu victims and indicate organised efforts to promote religious conversions. The systematic use of Kabirpanth teachings to exploit trust, sow doubt, and misrepresent Hindu practices constitutes a clear religiously motivated offence. It is further important to note here that some of the victims present in the prayer meeting were minors, which means the element of consent and genuine change of conscience was missing ab initio. Minors, due to their young age and lack of maturity, are particularly vulnerable to manipulation and coercion. They may not have the ability to fully understand the implications of converting to another religion, and the perpetrator purposely targeted and exploited this vulnerability of the victim. Since this case exemplifies the use of coercion and manipulation to achieve religious conversion, it is a blatant act of religious hate, which is why it has been documented here in the hate tracker. In Kabirpanth theology, followers are taught to reject the worship of Hindu gods and goddesses, or any form of idol worship, as they regard such practices as contrary to the teachings of Kabir. While any religion or philosophy is free to practise its beliefs, denigrating Hindu deities in an effort to push people towards conversion constitutes a hate crime. Although some schools of thought consider Kabirpanth to be part of Hinduism, Kabirpanth followers view themselves as distinct from Hindus, creating clear religious animosity. This school of thought and its methods of proselytisation are similar to those seen in Muslim and Christian conversion groups, which target vulnerable Hindus, denigrate Hindu beliefs, and offer inducements in an effort to convert them. In Islamic theology, idol worship, referred to as Shirk, is regarded as the gravest sin. The Qur'an strictly condemns it, and Islamic teachings emphasise the complete rejection of any practice associated with idol worship. Muslims are taught from a young age that idolatry is an unforgivable sin. While this belief is central to Islamic faith, it has also led, historically and in contemporary times, to intolerance and hostility towards idol-worshipping religions, especially Hinduism. When individuals publicly mock Hindu deities, it reflects more than personal disrespect—it is often the manifestation of deep-seated theological contempt against Hindu practices, stemming from the Islamic doctrinal view that idol worship is impure and offensive. Such actions target the identity, beliefs, and dignity of Hindus. Mockery of deities is a deliberate attack on the religious sentiments of the Hindus that stems from the intrinsic animosity against the religion. The denigration of Hindu deities and the instructions to abandon traditional worship at the Kumher resort were also a manifestation of deep-seated doctrinal contempt towards Hindu practices, stemming from the theological view that idol worship is invalid and that Kabir alone is the Supreme God. Given that this case meets all parameters of a religiously motivated hate crime under the category of Predatory proselytisation, it is being added to the hate crime database of the Hinduphobia Tracker. Disclaimer: Media reports state that around 200 Hindu villagers, including men, women, and children, were targeted for conversion in Kumher town of Deeg district, Rajasthan, but no gender or age-wise breakdown was provided. For documentation clarity, the Hinduphobia Tracker has used a proportional demographic estimate based on India’s Census 2011 and NFHS-5 (2019–21) rural population data. Accordingly, the 200 participants are estimated as 80 men (40%), 70 women (35%), and 50 children (25%), reflecting typical family-based rural participation.