Bombing at Children's Home Injures Boy

A teenage boy was injured when a bomb exploded at the Grace English Boarding School in Birganj, Nepal on April 25. Mukesh Karki (15) sustained leg injuries and required hospitalization. An activist group known as the Nepal Defence Army (NDA) has claimed responsibility for the bombing. They also attempted to destroy a bus on the property.

According to news reports, the Hindu militants claim the staff was converting Hindu children to Christianity by force with funds provided by pro-Maoist groups. The purpose of the NDA is to restore the country to a Hindu theocracy.

The Grace English Boarding School, together with the Blessed Children's Home, help to meet the physical and educational needs of more than three hundred children in Birganj, both Hindu and Christian. Two years ago, the directors, Babu and Sabitri Varghese, were charged with forcibly converting children. Those charges were later dropped due to lack of evidence.

Pray for the full physical recovery of Mukesh. Pray for the staff and students of the school and home as they continue to care for the needy children of the community. Pray that God will silence those who falsely accuse believers of forcible conversion.

For more information on the persecution of Christians in Nepal, click here.

  • Current Ministry Project

    Through training on awareness, advocacy, and the theology of persecution, VOMC is helping to equip church leaders in Nepal to better respond to and withstand persecution.

    Project Fund: Equipping the Saints

  • Country Information

    Population
    30,899,443 (2023 est.)

    Ethnicity (%)
    Chhettri (16.5), Brahman-Hill (11.3), Magar (6.9), Tharu (6.2), Tamang (5.6), Bishwokarma (5), Musalman (4.9), Newar (4.6), Yadav (4.2), Rai (2.2), Pariyar (1.9), Gurung (1.9), Thakuri (1.7), Mijar (1.6), Teli (1.5), Yakthung/Lumbu (1.4), Chamar/Harijan/Ram (1.4), Koiri/Kushwaha (1.2), other (20)

    Religion (%)
    Hindu (81.2), Buddhist (8.2), Muslim (5.1), Kirat (3.2), Christian (1.8), Other (0.5), Unspecifed (0.2)

    Leader
    President Ram Chandra Poudel (2023)

    Government type
    Federal parliamentary republic

    Legal system
    English common law and Hindu legal concepts

    Source: CIA World Factbook

  • Pray for Nepal

    Pray that Christians will practice their faith with courage.

    Pray that despite the lack of freedom to share the hope of faith in Christ, the Lord will give Christians opportunities to evangelize.

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Nepal News

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    Pastor Keshav Raj Acharya
    Photo: Christian Solidarity Worldwide

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    Pastor Keshav Raj Acharya
    Pastor Keshav Raj Acharya
    Photo: Christian Solidarity Worldwide

    Pastor Keshav Raj Acharya of the Abundant Harvest Church in Pokhara, Nepal, has faced ongoing pressure from Nepalese authorities over the past two years. Initially detained in March 2020, he was accused of spreading false information about COVID-19 after uttering a recorded statement that "God is able to heal." Eventually those charges were dropped, but the pastor was arrested twice more for allegedly trying to convert Hindus to Christianity and "outraging religious feelings." In November 2021, he was convicted but granted bail a month later while appealing the ruling (see this page).

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