september 29, 2005
Persecution on the Rise Again in India
An estimated 200 million Christians worldwide suffer interrogation, arrest and even death for their faith in Christ -- with another 200 to 400 million facing discrimination and alienation. One place where persecution is on the rise is the nation of India.
According to Compass Direct and Open Doors, Hindu fundamentalists returned to the Gospel Echoing Missionary Society (GEMS) compound in Rohtas district, Bihar state, India, on Sunday. As in a previous attack on August 31, they severely injured several Christians.
This time, one man received a spinal injury that left him partially paralyzed, reports Compass.
“About 16 people came from the nearby villages of Shankarpur and Bhedibigha at 6:30 p.m. on Sunday and broke open the gate of the compound,” a representative of GEMS told Compass. “They pulled out some of the GEMS staff (from the compound) and brutally beat them. They also robbed them of their belongings before throwing them into the fields.”
According to Compass, the mob hit a Christian doctor, Ambrose Christopher, around the head and hands, breaking one of his fingers. They took another man, Stephen Shankar, to nearby Bhedibigha village and brutally beat him before throwing him into a field. Another man was left with a serious nosebleed after being punched in the face.
The most serious injuries, however, were sustained by Kirupakaran Shankar, who was recently married. The attackers injured his spinal cord, resulting in the loss of movement in one leg, reports Compass.
GEMS is the largest indigenous Christian missionary agency in Bihar with approximately 100 families – and a total of 900 children – living in the compound, which contains a school, student hostel, orphanage, hospital and other social service facilities.
Compass reported a mob that swelled to around 800 people had previously attacked GEMS on August 31st, injuring at least 12 Christian residents and holding the compound under siege for three days.
“Several attacks this month alone seem to signal a new wave of persecution of Christians in India,” says Dr. Carl Moeller, president of Open Doors USA. “We need to keep believers in India in our prayers and in our hearts.”
In other recent persecution news from India:
- Christians in Chattisgarh, India, organized a five-day rally two weeks ago to protest increased attacks on churches in the state. About 80 Christian leaders attended the rally, coordinated by Arun Pannalal of the Church of North India, following September 11 violence in Raipur in which Hindu fundamentalists destroyed property at one church and struck worshipers at another, according to Compass.
- On September 22, Hindu fundamentalists attacked and threatened several Christians in the Jhabua district of Madhya Pradesh state, accusing them of desecrating a Hindu idol. One Christian was admitted to a hospital with serious injuries, while another was detained at the Kalyanpura police station for over 32 hours.
- The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP or World Hindu Council) has called for a comprehensive law to ban religious conversions in India, as part of a new campaign to stem the “increasing” number of conversions around the country. Addressing media on August 25, Mohan Joshi, national secretary of the VHP, said anti-conversion laws in some states were not stringent enough to curb religious conversions, reports Compass.
India has 25 million Christians, who represent 2.4 percent of the population. India is 83 percent Hindu and 11 percent Muslim.
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