In Uttar Pradesh, Christians attending Pastor Ashok’s church were attacked and arrested on charges made by the Bajrang Dal.
The incident of the attack and arrest occurred on Sunday, May 22, 2024, when Christians of Jamuna Village were attacked by the Bajrang Dal in the prayer hall in Azamgarh during the church service on Sunday. The Bajrang Dal got the police along with them as well, it appears. A mob of Bajrang Dal rushed into the service and started attacking the Christians present.
After the attack, the police arrested Pastor Ashok, his wife, and his son and took them to Azamgarh Kotwali. The family alleges that they were arrested on fake allegations placed on the pastor and church about conversion in an attempt to malign the Christian community.
Sources say that the police are asking for Rs.20,000 for their release in an alleged extortion bid.
The arrests had by made by the police on the complaint made by Bajrang Dal in the Nighasan Road, Mahewaganj district, Lakhimpur Kheri where attacks on Christians on fake charges of conversion are increasing.
Attacks on Christians in India are not new, however, this is the first time in India that the attacks are reaching metropolitans across the states, especially after the No Conversion Bill was passed.
A human rights lawyer shared on Twitter, tagging the UP police and the Prime Minister as well as the USCIRF and other influential people, “A batch of religious extremists snuck into a 3-decade old Church in Azamgarh this morning. They recorded the worship service, called Kotwali police, disrupted the prayer service, scattered the congregation by issuing threats
@azamgarhpolice
@Uppolice
@dgpup
@PMOIndia
@USCIRF
आज 22/05/022 ग्राम जमुना के लोगो को पुलिस ने बजरंगदल के द्वारा कि गई शिकायत पर अरेस्ट किया निघासन रोड महेवागंज जिला लखीमपुर खीरी में हुआ जहां पर पास्टर अशोक की कलीसिया चल रही थी और वहां RSS लोग आए मारपीट की उन्होंने पुलिस को बुलाया पुलिस तीन और विश्वासी लोगों को थाने ले गयी है
— Hudson Aroon (@AroonHudson) May 22, 2022
Latest update:- station police is asking for Rs.20k for their release.
— Hudson Aroon (@AroonHudson) May 22, 2022
The Danger of Criminalizing Christians for Conversion
The last few years have been some of the most violent in recent times for Christians and the United Christian Forum said 2021 was the “most violent year for Christians” in India. In fact, after the 2008 violence and since 2014, ADF International stepped up too, helping Christians. Many groups have started toll-free helplines to assist Christians in distress
Recently, USCIRF (United States Commission on International Religious Freedom) recommends 15 countries for “Country of Particular Concern” (CPC) designation in their 2022 Annual Report, and India is on the list.
In 2008, for the first time, Christians saw terrible violence against Christians (http://www.asianews.it/news-en/At-least-500-Christians-killed-in-Orissa,-government-sources-say-13658.html reports at least 500 Christians were killed in Odhisa, an event much masked) in the Eastern part of India in the State of Odisha, such unprecedented violence has never before been encountered by Christians in India.
There were 264 churches burned down, houses burned, and horrifically Christians burned alive as well as killed in other heinous manners in a three-day-long pogrom. There were 50, 000 who were displaced from their homes, and many fled to forests as well to take shelter, and some were bitten by poisonous snakes and died while others perished due to starvation.
After this dreadful massacre, the Christian volunteers from ADF started meeting senior government officials, and they even met the Prime Minister, the President, and they were updating him on the situation but nothing was changing on the ground.
The Christian volunteers suddenly realized it was not enough to be doing training or sending out prayer requests, they realized they needed to be more involved.
The violence comes from a small group of people who believe that India is a Hindu nation. (India constitutionally is a democratic “secular” republic meaning it is equal for all citizens). What the volunteer observed in patterns of violence across the country.
In this, they noticed that when a small group of Christians would gather together for church services, prayer, fellowship, or even for dinner, they would have a mob that would descend into that home or the church and beat up everyone present there! They would then take the leader of that particular meeting such as the pastor or evangelist and drag them to the police station and try and have them arrested under laws called the anti-conversion laws.
(At the present time, the laws are in force in eight out of twenty-nine states: Arunachal Pradesh, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Uttarakhand).
The Indian Christians challenged this law in 2012, can it ever be the state’s decision to decide who can or cannot be a Christian.
The anti-conversion laws fail to protect the dignity of each person and violate basic international human rights norms. One group under threat is the Dalits, which comprise 70% of the church community in India.
ADF states, “We want to stop violence and hostility against the Dalits and the negation of their rights.”
Well, speaking about India as the world’s largest democracy and how it is descending. Christians cannot even have a safe Sunday anymore!
An Update! In the Lakhimpur district, Pastor Ashok Kumar, Pastor Ramswaroop, and two Christians got bail from SDM Court Sadar on Tuesday giving relief to the otherwise tense situation.
You may want to read this article about the rising attacks. https://hamslivenews.com/2022/01/15/the-rising-persecution-of-christians-in-india-in-midst-of-suppression-slander-slaughter/