Hindu villagers brainwashed through Bible teachings, enticed to convert to Christianity through incentive
Rampur, Uttar Pradesh, India 
23 June, 2025
Case Summary
In Incha Ram Milak village in Rampur, Uttar Pradesh, several Hindus were targeted for conversion to Christianity through incentives such as free education and employment. The Hindu villagers were also brainwashed with the teachings of the Bible to adopt Christianity. Four Christians, including two women, orchestrated this conversion attempt. News reports suggest that a Christian woman named Dharmvati gathered Hindus at her home, where three other Christians, including a woman from Delhi, were actively encouraging Hindu villagers to convert to Christianity. Such conversion activities were not new; the same Christian group had been conducting such gatherings for several days. The group read from the Bible and attempted to influence and brainwash the Hindu villagers, offering incentives to persuade them to adopt Christianity and discard their Hindu faith. Upon learning of these activities, members of Hindu organisations arrived at the scene and staged a protest by chanting slogans of 'Jai Sri Ram'. Following this, Avinash Patel, the district co-convenor of Bajrang Dal, filed a complaint at the local police station. The police registered an FIR against all four accused under the Uttar Pradesh Religious Freedom Act 2021, citing sections 3 and 5, which address forced religious conversion. Following this, the police acted swiftly and arrested the four Christian perpetrators, including Dharmvati and another woman, and recovered religious books from the scene that were used to persuade the Hindu villagers to adopt Christianity. Further reports stated that the accused Christians included pastors from Delhi who were enticing villagers with offers of free education and employment. The arrested Christians were identified as Vivek, Pawan Kumar, Mamta, and Dharmvati, all residents of Delhi. During the police interrogation, the four accused admitted to using incentives and brainwashing to convert the Hindu villagers. Inspector-in-charge Sanjeev Kumar confirmed that all four individuals were arrested. Police also stated that they seized four Bibles and a diary from the scene, further substantiating the conversion activities. Inspector Kumar also confirmed that the accused were actively attempting to influence villagers and lure them with incentives to adopt Christianity.
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 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- 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 the 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 proselytisation, such cases are considered religiously motivated hate crimes. In this case, in Ramnpur, Hindus were lured to convert to Christianity through incentives like free education and employment. The nature of the conversion efforts, the use of inducements to exploit Hindus, 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 community. In this context, the Christian missionary members specifically targeted Hindus, which suggests a lack of respect for Hinduism and its followers. Such actions are carried out to strip Hindu victims of their faith. The use of 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 might have been 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. Furthermore, it is important to note that the Christian perpetrators were actively attempting to indoctrinate Hindu villagers by reading passages from the Bible. Using the scriptures 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. Such actions are designed to exploit and undermine the beliefs of Hindu victims and are clear indicators of religious hostility towards Hindus and their religious identity. The seizure of Christian texts like the Bible, specifically intended to persuade Hindu villagers to convert, further demonstrates that this was not an isolated incident of evangelism, but rather part of a broader, organised operation to further religious conversions. When religious material is used to exploit trust, sow doubt, and misrepresent beliefs to coerce conversion, particularly in a systematic manner, it constitutes a religiously motivated offence. Reports also stated that such Christian gatherings had been happening for many days. Such repeated actions of religious conversions, especially when they involve inducement, manipulation, and brainwashing, are a clear example of a religiously motivated crime because they are directed at undermining the religious and cultural identity of Hindus through manipulation and unlawful means. It also highlights that the conversions weren’t isolated or accidental but part of a long-term, targeted pattern. By focusing specifically on Hindus, these Christian evangelists were religiously profiling vulnerable Hindu individuals (often from economically weaker groups) and working systematically to erase their Hindu identity. 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 many parameters of a religiously motivated attack against Hindus and their faith; therefore, it is being added to the hate crime database.
Case Status
Arrested
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Christian Extremists
Perpetrators Range
From 2 To 5
Perpetrators Gender
both
Sources 
