Case Summary

In Samodhipur village of Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh, Hindu villagers were targeted for conversion by Christian missionaries under the pretext of a healing meeting. They also offered inducements, and Hinduism was denigrated to push people towards conversion. According to reports, missionaries used to organise a healing meeting (Changai Sabha) every Sunday, where they would brainwash and lure Hindu villagers to convert to Christianity. The accused were identified as Jawaharlal, his son Jitendra Kumar, and an unknown person. Hinduphobia Tracker accessed the FIR, which further mentions that the accused, who claimed to be pastors, brainwashed Hindu villagers to leave Hinduism and adopt Christianity. They denigrated Hinduism by claiming that there is nothing in Hinduism, and villagers should remove the idols of Hindu gods and goddesses from their homes and replace them with a picture of Jesus Christ. They also offered inducements such as jobs and money in exchange for conversion, claiming that a lot of money comes from abroad for the conversion. They claimed that in exchange for conversion, villagers would be offered jobs at Christian institutions. They also motivated Hindu villagers to bring others for conversion as well. When members of Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (Hindu organisations) received information about the gathering, they arrived at the site and found hundreds of men and women gathered there. They confronted the accused; however, the accused became aggressive and began abusing them and attempted to physically assault them. On receiving the complaint, the police also arrived at the spot and arrested Jawaharlal. As of the date of writing this report, the investigation was ongoing. The police station in charge, Pankaj Kumar Tripathi, confirmed that the case was registered against Jawaharlal, his son Jitendra, and an unknown person.

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Why it is Hate Crime ?

This case has been added to the tracker under the primary category of: Predatory Proselytisation. The subcategory under this 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 second sub-category selected here 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. Such cases where Hindu victims are harassed to convert to the perpetrator’s religion are rooted in animosity towards the victim’s religious identity and are therefore documented as religiously motivated hate crimes. The third sub-category selected here is - Proselytisation by grooming, brainwashing, manipulation or subtle indoctrination, with the tertiary categories being - Pattern of targeting Hindus and Conversion of Minor. 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. The second primary category selected here is - Attack not resulting in death. Within it, the sub-category selected is - Attacked for opposing radicals or trying to save victim. In several cases, Hindus are attacked for opposing religiously motivated crimes being committed against a fellow Hindu or simply for voicing an opinion opposing radical elements, who either have in the past or continue to persecute Hindus. In such cases, the initial attack against the victim, against which the Hindu was trying to defend the victim, would also need to be classified as a religiously motivated hate crime. Since the initial crime itself was religiously motivated and the subsequent crime of attempting to save the victim or speaking against the radical elements ends up inviting a violent attack, it would also be classified as a religiously motivated hate crime under this category. This case has been added to the tracker because Hindu villagers were targeted for conversion by Christian missionaries under the pretext of a healing meeting. They were lured with inducements such as jobs and money to convert to Christianity. Offering incentives or making false promises, especially when directed at vulnerable individuals in need, shows that these incentives are not acts of kindness or charity. Instead, they are calculated moves to exploit vulnerable Hindus because of their religion. By providing inducements in exchange for conversion, the accused were effectively blackmailing those who might have been desperate for assistance or hope. 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 stripped people of their agency and dignity and resulted in coerced conversions. This systematic attempt to erode the religious foundation of individuals and replace it with allegiance to another faith. This reflected deep religious malice and animus against the Hindu identity. It is important to mention here that this was a covert proselytisation attempt being carried out under the guise of a "healing meeting," wherein economically vulnerable Hindu individuals were being lured into conversion by Christian missionaries. The inducements offered, whether in the form of emotional manipulation, supposed miraculous cures, or promises of material upliftment, were designed to sever the individual from their religious identity and embed them within a non-Hindu religious framework. By providing inducements or promising healing in exchange for conversion, the accused were effectively blackmailing those who might have been desperate for assistance or hope. 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. Furthermore, the perpetrators also insulted and denigrated Hinduism and its deities. They misled people against Hinduism by claiming that there is nothing in Hinduism, and villagers should remove the idols of Hindu gods and goddesses from their houses. This went beyond religious debate or proselytisation; it constituted an act of incitement and insult directed at the core beliefs of the Hindu community. Such remarks were designed to demean and undermine the faith of Hindus and were intended to create an inferiority complex in the minds of the victims against their own faith. This fostered an environment of hostility and disrespect towards the Hindu community and its deities. Such acts of insulting Hinduism stemmed from Christian theology, which harboured disdain and hatred for polytheistic faiths, and which categorised Hindus as ‘polytheists’, thereby fostering hatred against them. Such actions made the religiously motivated nature of the crime even more evident. The Christian faith, by its very theological foundations, placed a strong emphasis on proselytisation. In pursuit of conversion objectives, Christian evangelists often employed unethical means, ranging from denigration of Hinduism to inducements such as money or jobs. These were not random or isolated incidents, but rather premeditated efforts to undermine the Hindu faith, persuade Hindus to discard their own faith, and convert to Christianity. Such acts were deeply rooted in religious animosity towards Hindu victims, and thus, this case was added to the tracker. Additionally, when members of Hindu organisations arrived at the spot and confronted the accused, they were physically assaulted and verbally abused. This was an act of calculated aggression clearly designed to silence resistance and assert ideological dominance. Here, too, the underlying animosity stems from a refusal to allow Hindus to safeguard their religious community from coerced conversion. The attack was not a spontaneous personal altercation but a defensive reaction by the perpetrators to protect their religiously motivated operation and deter future opposition.