Villagers targeted for conversion under the guise of ‘healing’; Bibles distributed to aid proselytisation
Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, India 
8 April, 2025
Case Summary
In Masoom Nagar, located in the Maholi area under the jurisdiction of the Highway police station in Mathura, members of the Dharma Jagran Samanvay Vibhag (Dharma Jagran Coordination) disrupted an illegal religious conversion event disguised as a ‘healing meeting’. The group alleged that the gathering was a covert attempt at proselytisation by Christian missionaries. The incident came to light when Vijay Singh Gurjar, the department’s co-convener, received a tip-off about ongoing conversion activities in the locality. Acting on the information, Gurjar and his team reached the residence of a local man, Ter Singh, where the prayer session was being held. Eyewitnesses and Dharma Jagran members reported that Bibles were being distributed during the event, leading to further suspicion about the true nature of the gathering. As more members of the Dharma Jagran Coordination arrived, including Mahanagar convenor Balram Singh, project head Vikram Sisodia, co-convener Girish Rajput, and other local volunteers, tensions escalated. The group confronted those present and successfully halted the proceedings. Reports suggest that the Christian group fled the scene to avoid further confrontation.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case has been added to the tracker under the prime category of- Predatory Proselytisation and under this, the sub-category chosen 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 is- Proselytisation by grooming, brainwashing, manipulation or subtle indoctrination. 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, the Christian nun was attempting to exploit a specific vulnerability of the victims who were, in all likelihood, economically backward. The missionary exploited the poor victims by promising them cures for their ailments - cures that they either could not afford or for incurable diseases. Since exploiting vulnerabilities for the explicit purpose of conversion is purely based on animosity towards the victim's faith, this case has been categorised as a religiously motivated hate crime. Further, the accused individuals were found distributing Bibles amongst the victims. Such actions involve subtle forms of indoctrination, where individuals are gradually exposed to religious teachings and practices, making them susceptible to conversion without fully understanding the consequences or being given an opportunity for critical reflection. Since the underlying offence, in this case, is against people of a specific faith and involves subtle tactics of indoctrination, which obviously stems from a bias against the Hindu faith, this case has been documented as a hate crime.
Case Status
Complaint filed
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Christian Extremists
Perpetrators Range
Unknown
Perpetrators Gender
unknown
Sources 
