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Anti-Christian violence in India is religiously motivated violence against Christians in India.[1] Human Rights Watch has classified violence against Christians in India as a tactic used by the right-wing Sangh Parivar organizations to encourage and exploit communal violence in furtherance of their political ends.[1] The acts of violence include arson of churches, conversion of Christians by force, physical violence, sexual assaults, murders, rapes, and the destruction of Christian schools, colleges, and cemeteries.[2][1]
Anti-Christian violence increased dramatically since the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) started its rule at the center, first in March 1998 and more recently in 2014 (incumbent). The Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), Bajrang Dal, and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) are the organizations which have been most frequently accused of inciting the violence.[1]
Hundreds of incidents of violence against Christians are reported by various organizations every year. India's ministry of internal security and its National Commission for Minorities (NCM) officially list more than a hundred religiously motivated attacks against Christians each year.[3]
As of 2020, the USCIRF placed India as Tier-1 in minority persecution along with countries like China, North Korea, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.[4]
- ^ a b c d "Anti-Christian Violence on the Rise in India". Human Rights Watch. 29 September 1999. Archived from the original on 11 February 2009.
- ^ Vinay Lal. "Anti-Christian Violence in India". Manas: India and Its Neighbors. UCLA College of Letters and Science. Archived from the original on 2 October 2002.
- ^ Haynes, Jeffrey (23 March 2016). Religious Transnational Actors and Soft Power. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-317-06691-0.
- ^ "Religious freedom: USCIRF report downgrades India for 'violations'". The Indian Express. 29 April 2020. Retrieved 29 August 2020.