Hindus lured with money and false promises for Christian conversion; accused mocks Hinduism as ‘useless’

Case ID : b1c5dcb | Location : Umarkot, Chhattisgarh, India | Date of Incident : Sat, 18 October, 2025

Case ID : b1c5dcb

Umarkot, Chhattisgarh, India

18 October, 2025

Hindus lured with money and false promises for Christian conversion; accused mocks Hinduism as ‘useless’

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 Bundia village of Surajpur district, Chhattisgarh, Hindu villagers were lured and offered inducements for religious conversion by four Christian evangelists. The accused also denigrated Hinduism in an effort to push the Hindus towards conversion. According to the complaint filed by a Hindu man named Suresh Kumar, a resident of Bundia, a villager named Bajju had called him to his home, where three others, Jeevan Lakra, Shiva Toppo, and Diran Toppo, were present. They told him, "Following Hinduism is of no use; you will always remain sick and poor. Convert to Christianity, and everything will be fine." They further persuaded him to convert by citing examples of villagers who had allegedly received government land leases after converting to Christianity. Police investigations also revealed that the accused held prayer meetings in their homes and attempted to convert people by promising medical treatment and economic improvement. Upon receiving information, the Bhatgaon police conducted a raid during which the four accused, Bajju Minj (45), Shiva Toppo (56), Jeevan Lakra (30), and Diran Toppo (30), were arrested, and copies of the Bible along with written material containing religious preaching were recovered. During interrogation, the accused confessed to conducting conversion activities by spreading anti-Hindu sentiments and offering inducements in the form of promises related to health and financial improvement. A case was registered under the Chhattisgarh Freedom of Religion Act and relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (299, 354, 196, 197, and 3(5)). All four were presented in court, and further investigation was ongoing to identify their connection to a larger conversion racket.

Why it is Hate Crime ?

This case has been added to the tracker under the primary category- Predatory Proselytisation. Within it, 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 sub-category 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. 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 Hindu villagers were lured and offered inducements for religious conversion by four Christian evangelists. They promised medical treatment, economic improvement, and claimed that those who converted received land leases. Firstly, offering incentives or making false healing promises, especially when directed at vulnerable individuals in need, was not an act of kindness or charity. Instead, it was a calculated move to exploit Hindus because of their religion. By providing inducements or promising healing in exchange for conversion, the accused effectively coerced those who were desperate for assistance or hope. Such instances are seen in multiple cases where members of Christian missionary groups target socially and economically vulnerable Hindus to further their agenda of religious conversions. This form of coercion strips people of their agency and dignity, resulting in coerced conversions. These are not random or isolated incidents, but rather cases rooted in religious animosity towards Hindu victims. Secondly, the accused denigrated Hinduism by saying it was of no use in an effort to push the victim to convert. They claimed that the victim would continue to suffer from illness and poverty if he remained Hindu, contrasting this with promises of prosperity and good health upon converting to Christianity, thereby implying that Hindu beliefs were ineffective and inferior. Such remarks were designed to demean and undermine the faith of Hindus and create an inferiority complex in the minds of the victims regarding their own faith. Thirdly, the accused conducted a prayer meeting to convert Hindu villagers. The act of inviting Hindus to a prayer gathering while simultaneously conducting conversion activities demonstrated that these meetings were not genuine religious sessions or community prayers. Instead, they were calculated efforts to exploit trust and social cohesion within the Hindu community, disguising conversion attempts as routine gatherings. Fourth, during the raid, police recovered a Bible and materials related to religious preaching. Using the scriptures or literature of one faith to deliberately target and manipulate members of another, with the clear intention of religious conversion, represented a direct attack on the Hindu faith. Such actions were designed to undermine the beliefs of Hindu victims and were clear indicators of religious hostility. When Christian religious material was used to exploit trust, sow doubt, and misrepresent Hindu beliefs to coerce conversion, particularly in a systematic manner, it constituted a religiously motivated offence. The Christian evangelists employed these methods in pursuit of conversion objectives, including psychological pressure, misinformation, inducements, and denigration of Hinduism. These were not random or isolated incidents, but premeditated efforts to undermine the Hindu faith, persuade Hindus to discard their own beliefs, and convert to Christianity. Such acts were deeply rooted in religious animosity towards Hindu victims, which is why this case has been added to the tracker. Disclaimer: Even though police investigation revealed that multiple Hindu villagers were targeted for conversion, since only one victim has filed the complaint, the victim count has been recorded as 1.