Hindus lured with money and medical aid for conversion to Christianity in Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh
Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh, India 
26 August, 2025
Case Summary
In the Masturi police station area of Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh, Hindus were targeted for conversion to Christianity. They were lured with financial assistance and medical inducements to convert, and were also influenced through Christian religious texts. According to media reports, Baba Sharma, also known as Punendra Kumar Sharma, district head of a Hindu organisation, submitted a written complaint to the police. He reported that a Christian prayer meeting had been organised in a vacant poultry farm near Sandipani School on the Masturi–Pendri road. According to his complaint, those Hindus present at the meeting were being offered money and medical facilities to adopt Christianity. Around six women and eight men were found at the site. On receiving the information, the police reached the location and seized a large number of Christian religious books and diaries, which were being used to influence Hindus into conversion. Following this, the police brought the accused to the station. The complainant stated that this activity had been taking place secretly for a long time, during which the poor and helpless had been converted by offers of treatment and financial aid. He further emphasised that such activities could undermine communal harmony and create tension in society. The police registered a case against eight Christians, including a pastor named Sanjeev Kumar Suryavanshi, under Sections 299-BNS, 3(5)-BNS and Section 3 of the Chhattisgarh Freedom of Religion Act, 1968, and began an investigation. Notably, the Hinduphobia Tracker had previously reported several incidents of religious conversion in Bilaspur in 2025. For example, in Sarkanda, Bilaspur, Hindu women and children were targeted and subjected to intensive brainwashing designed to induce conversion to Christianity by a pastor named Sandhya Tiwari. Christian religious texts and pamphlets were distributed to facilitate these efforts. Similarly, in Bharni village, Bilaspur district, deceptive means masquerading as prayer meetings, de-addiction drives, health cures, and spiritual awareness campaigns were used to target Hindus for conversion. Victims faced prolonged psychological manipulation and systematic indoctrination. Another instance occurred in Shiv Vihar Colony, Bilaspur, where a Hindu man named Shivkant Kashyap was pressurised by Christian evangelists to convert to Christianity. Other Hindu families in the community were similarly targeted through covert prayer meetings in local homes. Likewise, in the Kewatpara area of Bilaspur, Prakash Singh, a Hindu man, was coerced into conversion through inducements offered by Christian missionaries. Several Hindu families, many from marginalised and economically vulnerable backgrounds, were targeted for religious conversion.
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 in this case 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, Hindus were lured with inducements and were indoctrinated to convert to Christianity by the Christian evangelists. Even Christian religious texts were used to brainwash the Hindu victims into conversion. 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 community. In this context, the Christian perpetrators specifically targeted Hindus, which demonstrates 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 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 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, making it a religiously motivated crime. The Christian perpetrators also actively attempted to indoctrinate the Hindu victims by using Christian religious texts and diaries. Using the scriptures or literature 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 violate and undermine the beliefs of Hindu victims and are clear indicators of religious hostility towards Hindus and their religious identity. Such actions further demonstrate that this was not an isolated incident of evangelism, but rather part of a broader, organised operation to further religious conversions. When Christian religious material is used to exploit trust, sow doubt, and misrepresent the beliefs of Hindus to coerce conversion, particularly in a systematic manner, it constitutes a religiously motivated offence. Furthermore, Hindu activists also reported that this conversion drive had been carried out for a long time. This persistent pattern of luring Hindus with incentives and deliberately targeting them stands as a stark example of a religiously motivated crime. These actions were designed to undermine the religious and cultural identity of Hindus through coercion and manipulation. It is evident that the conversions were neither isolated nor accidental; rather, they comprised a calculated and focused campaign to convert Hindus to Christianity. By specifically targeting Hindus, these Christian evangelists profiled vulnerable individuals and systematically set about erasing their Hindu identity, making it a glaring example of a religiously motivated offence. These instances of targeted proselytisation activities stem from inherent hostility towards the victims' 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. Therefore, this case is being added to the hate crime database. Disclaimer: Media reports stated that six women and eight men were found at the site where the illegal Christian conversion meeting was being held. Reports further stated that a case was registered by the police against eight individuals. However, the reports did not clarify whether the six women and eight men mentioned were victims or perpetrators. The gender of the perpetrators was also not specified. Therefore, for documentation purposes, the number of victims has been recorded as "Unknown". The perpetrator count has been noted as "eight", but their gender remains "Unknown".
Case Status
Arrested
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Christian Extremists
Perpetrators Range
From 5 to 10
Perpetrators Gender
unknown
Sources 
