Dalits and tribal Hindu villagers targeted, manipulated, and offered inducements for religious conversion by Christian missionaries
Araria, Bihar, India 
20 September, 2025
Case Summary
In the Shahjapur Panchayat Ward No. 2 area of Araria district, Bihar, Dalits and tribal Hindu villagers from economically vulnerable background were targeted, manipulated, and offered inducements for religious conversion by Christian missionaries. According to reports, numerous families from the Ravidas Hindu community were lured into religious conversion through deception and misleading propaganda by Christian missionaries. Missionaries also offered inducements to push people towards conversion. The missionaries conducted regular prayer meetings in churches every Sunday, which gradually replaced traditional Hindu religious practices in temples in the area. Members of the Dharma Jagran Manch and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad expressed serious concern over the systematic targeting of oppressed communities, warning that such conversions posed a threat to Hindu society. Local residents reported that many tribal people from Santhal Tola in Saifganj, Anchara, and Bhanghi Panchayats of the Forbesganj subdivision had already been converted to Christianity. Former district convener of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Manoj Soni, described the practice as a clandestine and organised attempt at religious conversion that needed to be stopped.
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, with the tertiary category being - 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 has been added to the tracker because Dalits and tribal Hindu villagers from economically vulnerable backgrounds in Araria district of Bihar, were targeted, manipulated, and offered inducements for religious conversion by Christian missionaries. Missionaries provided inducements to push people towards conversion. Offering inducements or making false promises, especially when directed at vulnerable individuals in need, shows that these incentives were not acts of kindness or charity. Instead, they were calculated moves to exploit vulnerable Hindus because of their religion. By providing inducements in exchange for conversion, the perpetrators were effectively blackmailing those who might have been desperate for assistance or hope. Such instances reflected a broader pattern in which members of Christian missionary groups targeted 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. These were not random or isolated incidents, but rather cases deeply rooted in religious animosity towards Hindu victims. Furthermore, the act of luring Hindus under the pretext of prayer meetings demonstrated that these gatherings were not genuine invitations to interfaith dialogue or religious prayers. Instead, they were calculated efforts to exploit the sense of community and trust within Hindu villages by disguising conversion attempts as prayer sessions in churches. As a result, vulnerable Hindus were manipulated to abandon their faith. These malicious actions were rooted in religious animosity towards Hinduism and its community. The nature of the conversion efforts and the wider impact on the Hindu community indicated a targeted action against Hindus as a collectivity. When individuals or groups focused their efforts on converting members of a particular religion, in this case Hindus, it demonstrated a fundamental disregard for the Hindu faith. Conversion, especially when not based on personal conviction but rather on external persuasion or pressure, was not simply about sharing a different belief system. It was an attempt to undermine the values, traditions, and identity of the Hindu community. In this context, the Christian missionaries specifically targeted Hindus in Bihar, which demonstrated a lack of respect for Hinduism and its followers. Such actions were carried out to strip Hindu victims of their faith, making it a religiously motivated crime. The Christian faith, by its very theological foundations, places a strong emphasis on proselytisation. In pursuit of conversion objectives, Christian missionaries often employed unethical means, ranging from psychological pressure and misinformation 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. Disclaimer: The Hinduphobia Tracker records incidents based on when the victim’s ordeal began. However, in this case, the report does not provide specific details regarding when the conversion activities began or when the victims were converted. Therefore, for documentation purposes, the date of the incident has been recorded as the date it was reported in the media - September 21, 2025.
Case Status
Unknown
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Christian Extremists
Perpetrators Range
Unknown
Perpetrators Gender
unknown
Sources 
