Case Summary

A Dalit Hindu named Kusumpal and his family in Ambehta Yakubpur village, Jalalabad (Shamli), Uttar Pradesh, were lured to convert to Christianity by two Christians, Monu and Rajneesh. The two Christian youths visited Kusumpal’s home and stated that if he and his family adopted Christianity, they would receive financial help from Christian missionaries. They offered to cover the cost of medical treatment for their ill son. Reports confirmed that Kusumpal lodged an official complaint against Monu and Rajneesh. The Thana Bhawan police arrested Monu, son of Mir Singh from Harinagar, Muzaffarnagar, and Rajneesh, son of Rajbhag from Fatehpur, Deoband, Saharanpur. During police questioning, both admitted to persuading many poor Dalit families to convert to Christianity by promising wealth and cures for their relatives. Police registered a case against the accused under the Religious Conversion Prohibition Act. Two books, diaries and identity cards were recovered from them. During further interrogation, the accused revealed that they travelled to various villages seeking impoverished Dalit Hindu families with ill family members, whom they attempted to convince to convert to Christianity by use of brainwashing techniques. The victims were also taught Christian prayers by Monu and Rajneesh.

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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- Conversion/attempts to convert by inducements. 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- 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. In this case, the Hindu man and his family were lured with incentives and were manipulated to convert to Christianity by Christian evangelists. The nature of the conversion efforts and the wider impact on the Hindu community all indicate a targeted action against Hindus as a collectivity. When individuals or groups focus their efforts on converting members of a particular religion, in this case, Hindus, then it demonstrates a fundamental disregard for the Hindu faith. Conversion, especially when not based on personal conviction but rather on external persuasion or pressure, is not simply about sharing a different belief system. It is an attempt to undermine the values, traditions, and identity of the Hindu victims. In this context, the Christian perpetrators specifically targeted a Hindu family, which suggests a lack of respect for Hinduism and its followers. Such actions are carried out to strip Hindu victims of their faith, making it a religiously motivated crime. The use of financial and medical incentives to encourage Christian conversion clearly demonstrates that these actions were not motivated by kindness or charity. Instead, they were calculated attempts to exploit vulnerable Hindus specifically because of their religion. By providing inducements to Hindus to change their faith, the Christian perpetrators were effectively emotionally blackmailing those vulnerable Hindus who are desperate for assistance. Such instances are seen in many 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 Hindus of their agency and dignity and enforces forced conversions. These are not random or isolated incidents, but rather are premeditated efforts to undermine the Hindu faith, persuade Hindus to discard their own faith, and convert to Christianity. Such acts are deeply rooted in religious animosity towards Hindu victims and their faith, making it a religiously motivated crime. Reports also indicated that the accused had been involved in illegal conversion activities at numerous other locations and targeted various poor Dalit Hindu families. This persistent pattern of targeting Hindus, luring them with incentives and subjecting them to psychological manipulation and brainwashing served as a stark example of a religiously motivated crime. Such actions are aimed at undermining the religious and cultural identity of Hindus through coercion, manipulation, and unlawful means. Such incidents highlighted that the conversions were neither isolated nor accidental but formed part of a calculated and targeted strategy to convert Hindus to Christianity. By focusing specifically on Hindus, these Christian evangelists were profiling vulnerable individuals and working systematically to erase their Hindu identity. The repeated nature of these actions revealed a deliberate intent to disrupt the cultural fabric and faith of the Hindu community, leaving the victims exposed to ongoing pressure and exploitation. These instances of targeted proselytisation activities stem from inherent hostility towards the victim's 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 and their faith; therefore, it is being added to the hate crime database. Disclaimer: The Hinduphobia Tracker records incidents based on when the victim’s ordeal began. However, in this case, the report does not specify the exact date of the crime. Therefore, for documentation purposes, the date of the incident has been recorded as the date it was reported in the media- 28th September 2024. Media reports do not specify the total number of members in Kusumpal’s family; only Kusumpal and his son were mentioned. Therefore, for documentation purposes, the victim count has been recorded as '2', representing a conservative approach.