Hindus coerced to convert to Christianity with money, denigration of Hindu deities, and brainwashing with Christian texts
Singrauli, Madhya Pradesh, India 
8 September, 2025
Case Summary
In Nigahi Basti of Navanagar police station area in Singrauli, Madhya Pradesh, almost 100 Hindus were targeted for Christian conversion by evangelists. The Hindus were offered money and were brainwashed with Christian texts to convert. Hindu deities were also denigrated. According to media reports, a Hindu complainant, Pratap Singh Verma, informed the police that a Christian prayer meeting was organised at Nigahi turn, where he too was pressured to convert. Pratap stated that the Christian perpetrators—Ganga Nayak, Meena Nayak, Arjit Nayak, Pinky Sonwani and Nandan Shah—who were present there, continually spoke of abandoning Hinduism and adopting Christianity. He said that he, along with other Hindus gathered there, was incited to convert through the distribution of money and by being manipulated with Christian religious texts. The police investigation revealed that the place where the prayer meetings were held was constructed on completely illegal land, developed as an unauthorised colony, and used for conversion activities for over ten years. Singrauli Police stated that this was not the first case. Earlier, too, many conversion conspiracies were exposed in the district. Through such events, innocent people were targeted and gradually converted. The police registered a case against five accused. Navanagar police station also disclosed that two of the accused had come from Odisha ten years ago. They had illegally occupied vacant land belonging to NCL and, with the help of local people, started the unlawful business of conversion. They carried out this work with great cunning. The police explained that both accused would first deceive some local residents and then gather intelligence about the area. After this, they targeted college students and other locals. They forced them to convert by offering money. Nearly 50 people had already been converted through this racket.
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- Attempts 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. 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, Hindus were lured with monetary incentives and were manipulated to convert to Christianity by Christian evangelists. Even Christian religious literature and texts were used to brainwash the Hindu victims into conversion. Even Hindu deities were denigrated by the Christian perpetrators. 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 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 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. Such acts are premeditated efforts to undermine the Hindu faith, persuade Hindus to discard their own faith, and convert to Christianity. Such actions are deeply rooted in religious animosity towards Hindu victims and their faith, making it a religiously motivated crime. Furthermore, the perpetrators made derogatory remarks against Hindu deities. This goes beyond religious debate or proselytisation; it constitutes an act of incitement and insult directed at the core beliefs of the Hindu community. Such remarks are designed to demean and undermine the faith of Hindus, fostering an environment of hostility and disrespect. These acts of insulting Hinduism stem from Christian theology, which harbours disdain and hatred for polytheistic faiths, and which categorises Hindus as ‘polytheists’, thereby fostering hatred against them. The Christian perpetrators were also actively attempting to indoctrinate the Hindu victims by using Christian religious texts and literature. 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. Reports also indicated that the accused had been involved in illegal conversion activities for nearly 10 years and had converted at least 50 Hindus. This persistent pattern of targeting Hindus, luring them with incentives and subjecting them to psychological manipulation 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. 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.
Victim Details
Total Victim
100
Deceased
0
Gender
- Male 0
- Female 0
- Third Gender 0
- Unknown 100
Caste
- SC/ST 0
- OBC 0
- General 0
- Unknown 100
Age Group
- Minor 0
- Adult 0
- Senior Citizen 0
- Unknown 100
Case Status
Arrested
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Christian Extremists
Perpetrators Range
From 5 to 10
Perpetrators Gender
both
Sources 
