Wave of arrests renews fears over anti-Christian crackdown in India
Recent incidents in two Indian states have renewed concerns over Christian persecution and the misuse of police power against religious minorities.
In Jharkhand, a Catholic nun, two NGO staff members, and a group of teenage girls were detained at the Jamshedpur railway station Sept. 19, UCA News reported. The girls, ages 13 to 19, had traveled to attend a scheduled training program on health and life skills when authorities intervened following accusations from Hindu nationalist groups who suspected religious conversion efforts.
Local Church leaders said the girls were carrying documentation, including parental consent and national ID cards, though some paperwork was incomplete. Father Birendra Tete, director of Catholic Charities in Jamshedpur, said the group was held overnight and released the following day after Church officials engaged with the police.
Father Sushil Dungdung, the diocesan chancellor, said the incident reflects a troubling pattern in which Christians are falsely accused by groups trying to push India toward a Hindu-dominated national identity.
>> Catholic bishops join thousands in India to protest surge in anti-Christian violence <<
That same day in Uttar Pradesh, police arrested 14 Christians during a prayer gathering in the Prayagraj district. The arrests came after a local Hindu leader filed a complaint accusing the group of promoting conversions and insulting Hindu deities.
The individuals were taken into custody and quickly brought before a local court, which ordered them into judicial detention.
Pastor Joy Mathew, who is assisting with their legal defense, rejected the allegations and described the gathering as a routine time of worship. Mathew also claimed that some of the Christians were forcibly taken to the police station by local activists and criticized authorities for filing charges without first conducting a proper investigation.
The Sept. 19 detentions follow another recent case in Chhattisgarh, where two Catholic nuns were arrested at a railway station after being accused of trafficking and forced conversion. Despite evidence of consent from the young women involved, the nuns were jailed for over a week and later released on bail. Catholic and civil leaders denounced the arrests as politically driven and part of a growing pattern of religious harassment.
While Christians represent only a small fraction of the population in India, growing tensions over religion and conversion laws have increasingly put these communities under pressure.
According to UCA News, Uttar Pradesh, in particular, has recorded a high number of incidents involving religious minorities, with over 200 cases of reported anti-Christian hostility last year alone.
