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India

  • Hindu Militants Beat Pastor and Christian Couple

    In two separate attacks, Hindu militants beat a Christian couple from Lakarpur in Haryana state and assaulted a Pastor in Raipur, Chhattisgarh, according to a December 21 report from Compass Direct.

    On December 17, a group of fifty militants from the Dharam Raksha Sena (DRS or "Army for Religious Protection") beat an independent pastor, Philip Jagdalla, while he was returning from his church. The militants then dragged him to the police station where they accused him of forced conversions. The police arrested him on charges of "hurting the religious sentiments of Hindus." When representatives of the Chhattisgarh Christian Forum (CCF) went to bail out Jagdalla, DRS militants were surrounding the station and shouting slogans against Christians.

    The police sent Pastor Jagdalla to a hospital for medical examination and registered a counter complaint against the attackers -- actions which the CCF praised since Christian victims are rarely treated in this way. The CCF also condemned local newspapers for publishing false allegations against Jagdalla.

    On December 20, about fifty members of the militant Bajrang Dal attacked a Christian couple, Rakesh Sen and Suman Sen, at approximately 8:00 a.m. The militants were angry at the couple for regularly holding Sunday worship in their home. They threatened to force all of the church members to chant the names of Hindu gods on December 24.

    A police complaint was registered against the Bajrang Dal.  According to the pastor of the New Life Fellowship, Cinderella Lal, the village head apologized for the attack and gave written assurance that there will be no further disturbances. The militants' plans for December 24 were also cancelled.

    Thank the Lord for the agreements reached between the Christians and their persecutors. Pray that those who were injured or threatened will not be fearful but instead trust in God (1 Peter 3:14-17). Pray that all Indian Christians will echo Peter's sentiment and determine to obey God regardless of what man says (Acts 5:29).

    For more information on the persecution facing Christians in India,click here.
  • Christian Convert Threatened by Islamic Militant
    Pastor Paul Cinaraj
    Photo from    Salem Voice Ministries
    On December 14, a Christian convert from Islam in Kerala State, Pastor Paul Ciniraj Mohammed, was threatened by a man claiming to be the leader of an Islamic militant group. According to a December 18 report from Compass Direct, the militant telephoned Pastor Ciniraj and said, "Start counting your days, as we will kill you in a few days time." He also mentioned Bashir Tantray, the prominent Christian worker who was killed by Islamic militants last month (click here for the story). Ciniraj fears that the threats are coming from the same group that killed Tantray since his death was not widely reported by local media.

    Pastor Ciniraj, who is the head of Salem Voice Ministries, survived an attempt on his life on March 16, 2006 (click here for more details) and has faced several threats and attacks for his evangelistic work.

    Ask God to keep Ciniraj safe from harm. Pray that, despite these threats, he will not be fearful but trust God (Revelation 2:10). Ask God to allow the work of Salem Voice Ministries to continue on unhindered.

    For more information on the persecution of Christians in India,click here. A series of videos on persecution in India was recently added to VOMC's multimedia website, www.vomcanada.com.
  • Christians Assaulted and Imprisoned in Karnataka

    Three Christians were assaulted in two separate attacks by Hindu militants in Karnataka state on December 5, according to a December 8 report from Compass Direct.

    Mayaeshak Baila was assaulted in the village of Gersoppa by a Hindu militant while returning home from a prayer meeting. Baila was waiting at a bus stop when he was approached by Chandrashekar Naik, a member of Bajrang Dal. Naik questioned Baila extensively about his activities in the village and once he realized that Baila was a Christian, he started to slap, punch and swear at him. He then threw Baila to the ground and kicked him in the ribs, stomach and back. He accused Baila of forcibly converting Hindu villagers and told him that he would be killed if he entered the village again. Baila was able to escape when others passing by intervened.

    After Baila filed a complaint at the Honavar police station, police arrested Naik and charged him under the Indian Penal Code for causing hurt, intentional insult and criminal intimidation.  However, Naik was quickly released on bail.

    Later that day, two Christians, Joseph Lopes and Agnel Dias, were assaulted by two Bajrang Dal members while they were visiting Christian homes in the village of Honavar. The militants dragged Lopes and Dias, who were both carrying Bibles, to the police station, where they accused them of preaching the gospel with the intent of forcibly converting Hindu villagers. Both of the men were detained overnight and released the following morning. Although they were aggressively questioned by authorities the entire night, they were not harmed or threatened.

    Pray that increased persecution in India will result in increased boldness among Christians (Acts 4:29-31). Thank the Lord that the two imprisoned Christians were kept safe from harm. Ask God to heal Baila of his injuries. Pray that those who falsely accuse believers of forcible conversion will see that the Gospel message is one of a free gift and not coercion, and respond in faith to Jesus Christ (Ephesians 2:8-9).

    For more information on the persecution facing Christians in India,click here. Video reports on some of the ways VOMC is assisting those persecuted for their faith in India are available on our multimedia website, https://www.vomcanada.com/.
  • Attacks in Andhra Pradesh

    All India Christian Council has reported two separate attacks on Christians in early December.

    In Pedda Demili in the district of Srikakulam, Andhra Pradesh a church building was completely destroyed by fire following threats from local villagers. Three months ago, four villagers approached Pastor B. Vijay Kumar and demanded that he destroy the building or else they would.  On the night of December 1, while the pastor was staying with relatives, villagers informed him that smoke and flames were coming from his church building. Though villagers attempted to extinguish the fire, they were too late and the building was completely destroyed.

    On December 4, a Christian media team visited the village of Malkapur in Sangareddy, Andhra Pradesh to show a film on Jesus. They obtained the necessary permission from the village head and then announced the screening to the villagers. However, while the film was being shown, police arrived and demanded to know what was happening. When one of the Christians told him that they had permission, the officer slapped him. A pastor who was present attempted to intervene but the officer demanded that the team leave immediately. The film was stopped and the team went to their place of accommodation. Early the next morning, the pastor found out that some of the local villagers were intending to burn the team's vehicle. Frightened, the team left the village.

    Pray for efforts to rebuild the church in Pedda Demili. Pray that believers in Pedda Demili will exemplify the love of God through consistent love and prayer for those who persecute them (Matthew 5:43-48). Pray for the continued spread of the Gospel in Sangareddy and throughout Andhra Pradesh.

    For more information on the persecution of Christians in India,click here.
  • Pastor's Wife Raped

    According to a December 1 report from Compass Direct, on November 29, Neelam Paswan (28), the wife of Pastor Shiriam Paswan, was alone in a field near her home in Elha, Bihar state when Kamlesh Singh Yadav allegedly abducted and raped her. When villagers caught Yadav trying to flee the area, he told them that someone had asked him to rape Paswan. He refused to identify the instigator by name and managed to escape.

    The Paswans work with Faith Fellowship, a local non-profit organization that Hindu militants have accused of converting children to Christianity. The organization's building in the community is used as a school for children as well as for Christian worship on Sundays. Pastor Radhey Shyam Philip, the founder of Faith Fellowship, believes that the attack against Pastor Paswan's wife was a deliberate attempt by Hindu militants to stop the Christian activity in the village. This belief is shared by local villagers.

    Ask God to give Neelam healing from the emotional and physical scars of her assault and fill her heart with His love (Matthew 5:43-44). Pray that Christians in this area will remain steadfast in the faith (1 Peter 5:8-10). Ask God to thwart the attempts of those who seek to destroy His Church.

    For more information on the persecution facing Christians in India,click here. New video reports by The Voice of the Martyrs Canada on persecution in India are available on our multimedia website, https://www.vomcanada.com/.
  • Hindu Militants Assault Catholic School Staff
    Bajrang Dal is the youth
    wing of the militant group
    Vishwa Hindu Paraisha (VHP)
     
    Several staff members of the Avila Convent Catholic Girls' High School in Mysore, Karnataka were assaulted by members of a Hindu militant group on November 30, according to a November 30 report from the Global Council of Indian Christians,

    At approximately 11:30 a.m., four members of Bajrang Dal, the youth wing of the militant group Vishwa Hindu Paraisha (VHP), entered the office of Sister Francina, the school’s headmistress, and started to accuse her of distributing Christian literature around a nearby Hindu Sadvidya School. She denied any knowledge of this distribution. They then brought in a man named Buta Singh and claimed that he was distributing Christian Literature at Sr. Francina's request. Singh denied these accusations and was dragged outside and severely beaten.

    One hour later, fifty militants entered the school building and began to verbally assault the staff members and accuse them of unethical conversion. Some of the staff members were severely beaten after they attempted to defend Sister Francina from attack. The militants also damaged a statue of the infant Jesus.

    Pray for endurance for Sr. Francina and the other staff members who run this Catholic school. Pray that they will continue find ways to teach others in God's truth despite continuing persecution. Pray that they will exemplify the love of God through consistent love and prayer for those who persecute them (Matthew 5:43-48). Ask the Lord to heal those who were injured in these attacks.

    For more information on the persecution of Christians in India,click here.
  • Pastors Beaten in Madhya Pradesh

    On November 30, Pastor Hatey Singh Gundiya and Pastor Gokul Gundiya were waiting for a bus in the village of Umria in Madhya Pradesh, India when a group of people approached them and asked what the two were doing in "their" area. According to a December 4 report from the Evangelical Fellowship of India, the group were members of the militant Hindu Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). Two members of the mob beat the pastors with sticks until witnesses who recognized the pastors began to object. A police report has been filed and the pastors were sent for medical treatment.

    Pray that these pastors will be healed of their injuries. Pray they will take comfort in the fact that God commends those who suffer for doing good (1 Peter 2:20-21). Ask God to enable them to continue their ministry and proclaim the gospel boldly and lovingly.  Pray that their persecutors will come to know Jesus Christ as Lord.

    For more information on the persecution of Christians in India,click here.
  • Persecution of Christians Continues

    Religious persecution in the world's most populous democracy continues unabated, as Christians suffer in multiple ways throughout India. The following accounts are some of those received by VOMC this week:

    (a) On November 17, Hindu militants set fire to a church building in the village of Dubbaka in the Nizamabad district of Andhra Pradesh, according to the All India Christian Council (AICC). Gasoline was poured on the wooden doors of the Pentecostal church. When the villagers noticed the smoke, they managed to extinguish the fire that had destroyed the doors.

    (b) AICC also reported that the St. Ann's School in Armor, Nizamabad district, was attacked on November 16. The day before, a student had attended school wearing black clothes as part of a Hindu ritual. The school talked to the parents about the importance of wearing the school uniform. When militants heard of the incident, they attacked the school, damaging vehicles and furniture. They also threatened to make the Catholic nuns parade naked.

    (c) Earlier this month in Nizamabad district, Pastor Praharshi was visiting a home for prayer on November 3 when a large group of youth surrounded the home. According to a November 27 report from Compass Direct, he and other believers in the house were severely beaten.

    (d) Also on November 3, Hindu militants attacked four pastors of an Assembly of God church in Kerala state, according to Compass Direct. The four -- Lallu Pappachen, Manoj Babu, K.J. Ebenezer and B. Jayachandran -- were taken to hospital for treatment. After the victims lodged a police complaint, their attackers destroyed equipment, furniture and the compound wall of the church.

    (e) Pastor Ashis Kumar Muna (25) was asked by his uncle on November 15 to pray for a Hindu woman suffering with tuberculosis and kidney problems in Rourkela, Orissa. According to the Global Council of Indian Christians, as he began to pray, the woman's daughters suddenly began to accuse Pastor Ashis of trying to force them to be Christians. Police were called and Muna was arrested. A petition for bail was rejected and Muna was sent to jail to await trial.

    (f) According to Evangelical Fellowship of India, Subash Kalappa Chougle, a worker for Pioneer Ministries in Karnataka state was taken into police custody on November 15 on false charges of rape. Subash was on his way to hold a prayer meeting in the small town of Khanapur, near Belgaum, when four girls asked him to come and pray for them at their house. Solomon Bijja, a co-worker stated that later "the four girls with the help of a local Hindu fanatic group went to the nearest police station and one of the girls who is below 20 years of age lodged a complaint against Subash stating that he kidnapped and raped her."  Subash's bail hearing was to take place today (November 29) at the Bangalore High Court.

    (g) The Evangelical Fellowship of India also reported that a mob consisting of BJP and Bajrang Dal activists and local residents disrupted an meeting in the region of Rajaji Garden and Jagadhri Workshop, Utteranchal.  A Christian preacher, A. M. Samuel, and several others were beaten and the temporary shelter in which he was addressing a gathering was ransacked in the late evening of November 15.  The mob alleged that the preacher's purpose in coming to the community was to convert Hindus to Christians.

    Pray that Indian believers will rejoice in the opportunity to grow in Christlikeness through the ongoing opposition to their faith (James 1:2-4). Ask Christ to help them set Him apart as Lord without giving in to fear (1 Peter 3:14-17). Pray that those injured will recover quickly from their injuries.

    For more information on the persecution of Christians in India,click here. New video reports on ways that VOMC is assisting persecuted Christians in India are also available on our multimedia website, https://www.vomcanada.com/.
  • Prominent Church Worker Murdered
    Bashir Ahmad Tantray.
    Photo from Global Council of Indian Christians' (GCIC)    Persecution Update
    A Christian convert from Islam was murdered by two unidentified Muslim militants on November 21 in the state of Jammu and Kashmir, India.

    According to a November 21 report from Compass Direct, Bashir Ahmed Tantray (50) was shot and killed while he was waiting by a bus stand in the village of Mamoosa, Barmullah. Eye-witness accounts claim that two young Muslim men came to the bus stand at 10:10 a.m. and started to inquire about bus timings. Then one of the militants took out a pistol and fired three rounds at Tantray at point-blank range.

    Tantray converted to Christianity ten years ago and had since been an active and widely known Christian worker in the state. A local Christian told Compass Direct, "There is no doubt among the people, both Christian and Muslim, here that he was killed because of his identity as Christian worker."

    Tantray is survived by his wife, two daughters and two sons.

    Pray that those who mourn for Tantray will find comfort in the fact that Christ is victorious over death and that those who die in Christ will be raised with Him. In view of this promise, pray that Christians in India will continue to give themselves fully to the work of the Lord (1 Corinthians 15:50-58). Pray that persecutors of Christians will come to repentance and salvation, just as Paul did. (Acts 9:1-19).

    For more information on the persecution of Christians in India,click here. The second part of a new video series on persecution in India was added this week to VOMC's multimedia website, https://www.vomcanada.com/.
  • Families Driven from Homes for Converting

    Nine families from the Bodo tribe in the northeastern Indian state of Assam were forced from their homes on November 14 for converting to Christianity, according to a November 20 report from Compass Direct. The families lived in four villages in the Kokrajhar district of Assam. The difficulties began after a church meeting was held in the village of Haldibari on November 13. The meeting infuriated adherents of the Bodo tribal religion, who resolved to expel the Christians. Twenty-five villagers attacked the homes of the Christians in their village and then moved on to the neighbouring villages of Moflabari, Jamduguri and Basdari. Security forces were rushed to the area to assist the families, who took shelter in an area school. At last report, seven arrests had been made, though all had been released on bail.

    Ask God to give the Christians who have lost their homes a deep assurance of His never-ending love, even in the midst of very trying circumstances (Ephesians 3:14-19). Pray that these persecuted believers will echo Peter's sentiment and determine to obey God regardless of what man says (Acts 5:29). Pray that the violence in this area will cease. 

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

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