Gospel For Asia (GFA) told BosNewsLife that over 60 Christians abducted on February 27 were released by "anti-Christian extremists," but only after they "were forced to endure a humiliating ceremony at a religious temple" where they received anti-Christian literature.
In a separate case, GFA missionary Haresh Kujur was released after being kidnapped in the northeastern state of Assam where he conducted a youth program at his church, the group said. No more details about his release were immediately available.
In Himachal Pradesh the over 60 kidnapped missionaries were released after the militants reportedly tried to force them to renounce their faith in Jesus Christ and return to Hinduism, India’s dominant religion.
MORE INCIDENTS
GFA said the kidnapping was no isolated incident in the area. "It is not unusual for these extremists to kidnap believers and try to force them to bow before the statues that represent the country’s traditional gods. If the Christians refuse to bow, they risk being ostracized from society, which brings much shame in the Asian culture in which they live."
It was not immediately clear if all or some of the believers had bowed for the statues before their release. In a similar development, extremists of the Hindu groups Vishwa Hindu Parishad or ‘World Hindu Council’ and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh last month reportedly lured believers to the Satyanarayan Temple in the heart of the state’s capital Rampur Bushar.
About 200 people were pressured to re-convert to Hinduism and many were forced to participate in rituals and purification ceremonies, Christians said.
Ramlal Kanol, a blind man who says he has a healing and preaching ministry in Bhutti village, told media that four men came to his house on February 26, first offering him money to go with them, then threatening to imprison and fine him if he didn’t. "They threatened me, asking me to ‘Continue your work with the poor and healing the sick, but in the name of Ram, not Christ," he said. Local media termed the alleged coercive conversion event “returning home."
STATE SUPPORT?
GFA told BosNewsLife that the militants seemed to have received support from the ruling hard-line Hindu party of Himachal Pradesh, India’s least evangelized state by Christian missionaries.
"The extremist ruling party believes that keeping people in the traditional religion brings unity to the state, and ultimately the entire country. Since Christianity is so radically different than the other religions, a person’s decision to follow Christ creates friction in families and sometimes entire villages." There was no immediate comment from officials.
Hindu militants have also accused Christians of involvement in "forced conversions." Missionaries have denied the charges, saying the Bible tells that anyone is free to either chose or reject Christ as "Personal Savior and Lord."
SOME HOPE
In what is seen as a hopeful sign by churches, India’s Gujarat state government this week revoked "anti-conversion" legislation that Christians said would have further limited religious rights.
India’s anti-conversion laws are supposed to curb religious conversions made by “force,” "fraud" or “allurement,” but Christians and rights groups claim the laws obstruct conversion generally, as Hindu nationalists use them to try to prevent the spread of Christianity in the country, by harassing Christian workers and incarcerations.
As an example of growing pressure on Christians, Indian media cited a government body in Communist-ruled Kerala state which has recommended banning of religious worship and use of religious inscriptions on the walls of private schools that receive assistance from the state.
CHRISTIAN INSTITUTIONS
The move is believed to be targeted at Christian institutions. The Global Council of Indian Christians, an advocacy group, has said that Communists have been targeting Christian institutions in Kerala since they first came to power there in 1957.
Militants have also attacked lawyers trying to defend Christians. In one of the latest incidents, Hindu extremists in the town of Balaghat in India’s state of Madhya Pradesh reportedly attacked the newly elected president of the Balaghat Christian Association, who was beaten for providing legal aid to five Christians attacked in a home five days earlier on February 22.
Dr. Robin Singh, a medical doctor and Christian leader, had reportedly provided legal and administrative help to Tom George, Sunil Lal and others who had been dragged from a Christian meeting and beaten with bamboo poles, sticks, rods and other weapons. Dr. Singh survived, but received internal injuries, Christians said. Christians comprise just over two percent of India’s mainly Hindu population of roughly 1.1 billion people. (MISSION WATCH is BosNewsLife’s regular look at Christian missionaries working in difficult circumstances).
