Poor Hindu individuals targeted for conversion through fake miracles by Christian pastor and wife in Punjab
Jalandhar, Punjab, India 
11 January, 2026
Case Summary
Poor and financially vulnerable Hindu individuals in Jalandhar, Punjab, were targeted by Pastor Ankur Narula, a Christian preacher, and his wife Sonia Narula through a systematic scheme involving staged miracles and the sale of so-called anointing oil, presented as a means of divine healing and spiritual transformation. The Church of Signs and Wonders, operated by the couple, promoted accounts of miraculous healings and marketed a product branded as anointing oil to individuals suffering from serious illnesses. Families burdened by medical expenses and uncertainty were drawn into this promise of hope. These activities drew scrutiny, and the Punjab and Haryana High Court issued notices to the Central Government and the Government of Punjab in response to a Public Interest Litigation filed by Jalandhar resident Tejasvi Minhas concerning the activities of Pastor Ankur Narula and his organisation. Pastor Ankur Narula and Sonia Narula were described in the petition as operating an organised religious conversion initiative that focused on individuals facing illness and financial hardship. They presented themselves as possessing miraculous healing powers and promoted an anointing oil that they stated could cure serious medical conditions. Individuals experiencing health crises and economic vulnerability were drawn to these assurances and approached the organisation seeking relief. Once such individuals became involved with the organisation, they were guided towards religious conversion within the framework of these healing practices. The petition further stated that the methods employed mirrored those associated with the late Nigerian preacher T. B. Joshua, whose ministry had faced international criticism over staged healings and conversion practices. The organisation promoted its activities extensively through YouTube and Facebook, thereby reaching a broad audience across Punjab and beyond. The Public Interest Litigation stated that foreign missionaries entered India on tourist visas and participated in religious activities linked to the organisation, raising concerns under the Foreigners Act, 1946. Issues were also raised regarding the receipt of foreign contributions without valid registration under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act. In addition, the petition highlighted the sale of watches and anointing oil without the issuance of Goods and Services Tax invoices, prompting further concerns about financial transparency. A substantial church building was constructed in Khanbra village as part of the organisation’s expanding presence. A formal complaint concerning these matters had been submitted to the administration on 12 January, yet no action had been taken at that stage. The Punjab and Haryana High Court took cognisance of the Public Interest Litigation filed by Tejasvi Minhas and issued formal notices to the Central Government and the Government of Punjab seeking their response. The Bench, headed by Chief Justice Sheel Nagu, directed the authorities to address the concerns raised in the petition, and the matter proceeded pending their replies.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
The primary category for this case is "Predatory Proselytisation". The sub-category here 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. Another sub-category for this case is "Proselytisation by grooming, brainwashing, manipulation or subtle indoctrination". The tertiary category for this case 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. This case qualified as a hate crime on the basis that Pastor Ankur Narula, a Christian preacher, and his wife Sonia Narula systematically targeted poor and financially vulnerable Hindu individuals in Jalandhar, Punjab, through a calculated and organised scheme involving staged miracles and the sale of fraudulent anointing oil, designed to exploit illness and financial hardship in order to draw them into religious conversion. The scale and organisation of the conversion operation, which involved foreign missionaries, foreign funding, staged healing events, and a sustained media presence on YouTube and Facebook, reflected a deliberate and sustained proselytisation initiative directed specifically at vulnerable Hindu individuals. The perpetrators’ conversion operation represented a clear example of predatory proselytisation directed at the Hindu community. Rather than engaging in open and transparent religious dialogue, Pastor Ankur Narula and his wife identified poor and financially vulnerable Hindu individuals suffering from serious illness and economic distress as their primary targets. They then used the promise of miraculous healing and the sale of fraudulent anointing oil to draw these individuals into the orbit of their organisation. The deliberate targeting of Hindu individuals at moments of vulnerability, when they were burdened by illness and financial anxiety, reflected a calculated strategy designed to exploit desperation in order to advance a religious conversion agenda. The perpetrators used direct financial and material inducements as central tools for drawing vulnerable Hindu individuals towards conversion. The anointing oil was sold to poor Hindu individuals with assurances of miraculous healing, capitalising on their urgent need for relief from serious illness. Public healing events were staged in a manner designed to create the appearance of divine intervention, encouraging vulnerable individuals to place their trust in the organisation and its Christian religious framework. The use of both material products and emotionally charged religious performances as inducements reflected a deliberate strategy of exploiting physical and financial vulnerability to make conversion appear both spiritually compelling and materially beneficial. The perpetrators employed a systematic and sustained strategy of psychological influence and gradual religious redirection to move vulnerable Hindu individuals towards conversion. By presenting themselves as possessors of miraculous healing powers and marketing fraudulent anointing oil as a remedy for serious illness, they created a structure of belief and dependency around individuals already facing hardship. The use of YouTube and Facebook to promote healing testimonies and events extended this strategy across Punjab and beyond, amplifying its reach among vulnerable Hindu communities. The methods were modelled on those associated with the late Nigerian preacher T. B. Joshua, whose ministry had faced international scrutiny for staging healings and promoting faith-based products, reflecting the deliberate and structured nature of the approach adopted. The organisation operated across multiple villages and actively promoted its activities online, while foreign missionaries entered India on tourist visas and participated in religious activities in contravention of the Foreigners Act, 1946. Foreign contributions were received without valid registration under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act, raising serious concerns regarding financial compliance. A substantial church building was constructed in Khanbra village as part of the organisation’s expanding infrastructure. A complaint submitted to the administration on 12 January did not result in immediate action, allowing the pattern of targeting vulnerable Hindu individuals to continue until the matter was brought before the Punjab and Haryana High Court. Given that the facts of this case met the parameters of a religiously motivated hate crime, it was entered into the hate crime database of the Hinduphobia tracker. Disclaimer: The Hinduphobia Tracker records incident dates based on when a crime occurred, or a victim's ordeal began, rather than when the media reported it. In this case, the exact date on which Pastor Ankur Narula and his wife Sonia Narula began their conversion activities targeting vulnerable Hindu individuals is not confirmed in the sources. Therefore, January 12, 2026, has been chosen as the indicative incident date as it represents the date on which a formal complaint was submitted to the local administration regarding the organisation's activities, making it the earliest confirmed and documented action taken in response to the conversion scheme. This was recorded for documentation purposes only.
Case Status
Case sub-judice
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Christian Extremists
Perpetrators Range
From 2 To 5
Perpetrators Gender
both
Sources 
