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India

• Believers Targeted for their Faith Throughout Country

  Around midnight on March 5th, approximately 30 Hindu militants forcefully entered the home of Pastor Ramsai Netam in Bhanupratappur, Chhattisgarh, accusing him of forcefully converting people and practising witchcraft. Dragging him to a cultural hall, the mob then beat the pastor, as well as his two sons who tried to protect him. The next morning, the police arrived at the scene and brought Pastor Ramsai to a nearby hospital, where he was treated for a serious head injury. However, the police recorded the cause of the wound as an "injury sustained from falling from a tree."

• Christians Targeted in Violent Attacks

  Believers in India routinely face threats and violence from Hindu militants.

  Militant Hindus attacked believers in several incidents during recent weeks. On Christmas Day, approximately 20 assailants raided the home where a group of Christians had gathered for prayer, grabbing Bibles and ripping them apart while shouting and cursing at the group for "destroying the Hindu culture." The Hindus also called local police, accusing the believers of "forced conversions to Christianity." Police arrested Pastor Arjun, 24, and five other Christians, seizing 20 Bibles from the home as evidence. The six Christians were released on bail the following day but still face prosecution.

• Maimed Believer Acquitted of Blasphemy

  TJ Joseph after reattachment surgery Photo: AsiaNews

  TJ Joseph, a Christian professor accused of blasphemy in 2010, was finally acquitted on November 15th. The accused professor was suspended from his job in March of 2010 after he included questions in a test that were deemed offensive to several of his Muslim students.

• Hindu Militants Attack Woman and Threaten Her Ministering Family

  Pray for her quick recovery. Photo: AsiaNews

  The mother of a Pentecostal pastor in Rajapark, Jaipur, was brutally attacked by Hindu militants who sought to kill her son and his wife. On August 13th, at 2:30 p.m., 51-year-old Reena Behl answered the door of her son's house to find four men who she says were disguised with helmets, demanding to see her son, Rev. Vishaal Behl, and his wife. When they were told that she was unaware of the couple's whereabouts, they pushed her aside and entered the house, breaking items and threatening to kill the couple. As Reena cried for help, the men pinned her to the floor and beat her. "If you do not convert to Hinduism, we will kill you and cut you to pieces," they told her. The only other person home was her elderly mother-in-law. Neighbours hurried to Reena's defense, at which point the militants fled. Reena was soon hospitalized with a head wound and a fractured hand.

• Madhya Pradesh State Proposes Restrictions on Religious Freedom

  As World Watch Monitor reports, Christians in Madhya Pradesh, India, could soon face serious religious restrictions due to potential changes to the state’s Freedom of Religion Act. Widely known as “anti-conversion laws,” provisions in the Madhya Pradesh Freedom of Religion Act prohibit citizens from forcing others to convert to another religion. Critics contend that it has been widely misused to criminalize willful converts and proselytizers.

• Christian Beheaded for Refusing to Renounce Faith

  Pray that many Hindus will come to know the Lord. Photo: Flickr / wallygrom

  It is reported that a Christian man was beheaded in Teliamura town, West Tripura, India, on May 25th for refusing to renounce Christ. According to reports, Tapas Bin, 35, had been under heavy pressure from his father-in-law to abandon Christianity. According to police, Tapas married Jentuly, the daughter of 55-year-old Gobinda Jamatiya, three years ago. Prior to this, the Christian man had been a private tutor of Gobinda's daughter.

  Since the marriage, Gobinda had been pressuring Tapas to abandon Christianity and join his tribal religion. When Tapas persistently refused, Gobinda decided to kill his son-in-law with the help of a shaman, Krishnapada Jamatiya (no relation). Police arrested the 42-year-old shaman but were unable to find Gobinda who works at the West Tripura
  Science and Technology Department and is thought to be on the run.

  Jentuly, now the widowed mother of a one-year-old child, told police that her father did not recognize their marriage and had pressured Tapas to convert. What is more, "My father might kill me and my son too," she fearfully admits. Commenting on the incident, an area church leader states, "Christians in Teliamura are facing discrimination and problems because of their faith in Christ. We have ceased all kinds of Christian activities in the area." For past reports of persecution, go to the India Country Report.

  Pray for God's protection over Jentuly and her infant son, as well as all Christians living in the town of Teliamura. May Tapas' grieving family and friends experience the comforting presence of Jesus during this difficult time. Please also intercede for the perpetrators of this heinous crime...that they would sincerely repent, turn from their wicked ways, and come to know the saving grace of our Lord Jesus.

• Judicial System Resolves Missionary's Murder

  The Staines family before the tragedy took place

  Fourteen years after Australian missionary Graham Staines and his two young sons were burnt to death by a right-wing mob, two more suspects were recently arrested from Odisha's (formerly known as Orissa) Keonjhar district.

  It is reported that long-sought fugitives Ghanshyam Mahanta and Ramjan Mahanta were finally arrested on May 17th during a raid by CBI officials and the Keonjhar police. A third individual has still not been located.

  At the time of the horrific incident, Graham Staines, 58, and his sons Philip and Timothy were burnt to death on January 22nd, 1999, by a mob led by Bajrang Dal activist Dara Singh. Graham and his sons were asleep in their station wagon in front of a church in Manoharpur village in Keonjhar, about 400 kilometres northwest of Bhubaneswar.

  According to recent news reports, numerous people had been previously arrested for their involvement in the crime, while the search continued for the remaining three perpetrators. In 2003, a Central Bureau of Investigation court in Bhubaneswar initially sentenced Dara Singh with the death penalty and the others to life imprisonment. In 2005, the Odisha high court commuted the activist leader's death sentence to life imprisonment.

  While we can be thankful that justice is being meted out on behalf of the Staines family, may the Lord continue to use their testimony in the lives of all they so lovingly served in India. Pray that He will continue to nurture the seeds of the Gospel that have been sown through this family's strong Christian witness and the forgiveness extended by Graham's surviving wife Gladys and their daughter Esther. As a result of His ongoing work, may these seeds bear much good fruit in the lives of the people within this community and beyond.

• Pastor Beaten During Church Service

  A pastor in Uttar Pradesh state was recently attacked and beaten during a church service. Near the end of the service, a group of Hindu men attacked Pastor "Caleb" by tying him to a tree and beating him. The attackers, who apparently were directed by Hindu leaders in the village, broke Pastor Caleb's arm during the beating.

  VOM partners are helping to provide him with medical treatment, while also urging police to prosecute the attackers. Pastor Caleb's church had been threatened in the past by high caste families. It is understood that about five Christian families who have faithfully remained with the church had angered villagers by refusing to offer a gift to a Hindu goddess.

  A group from the village also became angry when the Christian families refused to help with the wedding of a high caste family's daughter. Despite the recent attack, Pastor "Caleb" plans on continuing his ministry service in this volatile community. To learn more about the challenges faced by believers in this part of the world, please go to the India Country Report.

  While we are thankful to the Lord for Pastor Caleb's faithfulness and willingness to continue in ministry, we also pray that he will be completely healed of the afflictions imposed on him during the attack. May the loving concern and assistance of our VOM partners serve to further encourage and strengthen this dedicated man of God. As a result of his faithfulness, may many others be spurred on to preach the Gospel (Philippians 1:14) and win others for Christ.

• Pastor Released After Years of Confinement

  Pastor Samuel Photo: Gospel for Asia

  Following eight years of detainment due to false accusations, Pastor Samuel was joyfully released on March 13th. Although he was cleared of all the charges back in 2010, strikes and delayed court hearings had greatly hindered his release. Throughout this time, however, he continued ministering to the other prisoners. Thankfully, many of them made decisions for Christ as a result! Pastor Samuel's family, including his wife and 8-year-old daughter, are rejoicing over his final return home. Pray that God will immensely bless this reunited family, while continuing the wonderful work of faith that has begun in the lives of the prisoners. For an historical overview of this country, go to the India Country Report.

• Christian Villagers Assaulted by Angry Mob

  Pray for the safety of women being harassed for their faith in India. Photo: Flickr / Michael Foley

  On January 14th, three Christian women were attacked by Hindu extremists in Tamsai village (located near Navi, Mumbai). The incident took place while they were washing clothes at a public well. It all began because the 12-year-old daughter of one of the Christian women listened to Gospel songs on a mobile phone, causing the other villagers nearby to become irritated. These angry people protested that Christian music should not be played within their hearing range.

  Eventually, the number of enraged villagers increased, developing into a mob of about 50 people. After gathering near the houses of the Christian women, those in the mob physically assaulted them. Apparently, the Hindu extremists of Tamsai are strongly opposed to the use of Christian worship during healing services. Yet despite their anti-Christian actions, and the resulting violence against believers, it has been reported that many Hindus in the vicinity are coming to Christ. For more about the situation in India, please go to the India Country Report.

  Pray that God will protect and bless the Christians of Tamsai village, and that His divine healing touch would minister powerfully to the women who were injured in the attack. May these believers have the assurance that God is their refuge and strength, an ever present help in trouble. Let's also remember to pray for the salvation and spiritual deliverance of the Hindu extremists...that they, too, would experience a radical change of heart through the power of Christ's unfailing love.