SEVERAL incidents over the past few days leading up to Christmas chillingly illustrate what Christians and minorities in general in India have to put up with, as Hindutva mobs are given free rein to terrorise believers of other faiths. Reports have emerged of attacks on Christmas symbols in several Indian states, marring the joy of the festive season. For example in Raipur, Chhattisgarh, a mob barged into a mall and destroyed Christmas decorations. Separately, thugs reportedly belonging to the Bajrang Dal stormed a school in Assam and violently stopped preparations for the holiday. Meanwhile, a group of extremists marched up to a church in Bareilly, UP, and started chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’, which has gone from a Hindu religious expression to a Hindutva war cry.

In the past, much worse has happened to India’s Christian community. There have been several instances of violence in which churches were torched. The most recent such episode occurred in Manipur, during an ethno-religious conflict between two local communities, in which hundreds of churches were reportedly torched. Amongst the most reprehensible such crimes was the 1999 burning alive of Australian missionary Graham Staines and his two sons in Odisha. Those convicted of this ghastly crime were reportedly linked to the Sangh Parivar. Of course Muslims in today’s India have also been on the receiving end of attacks by Hindutva extremists. For example, Muslims have been lynched on mere suspicions of storing or transporting beef. Pakistan also has extremists of its own to deal with. But India likes to present itself as a rising superpower where all communities are free to live as they like. The truth is quite the opposite, as during the BJP’s time in power, the forces of Hindutva have become emboldened as never before. Therefore, those in the world community who raise the issue of protecting minorities should also look at India’s sordid record where religious persecution is concerned.

Published in Dawn, December 29th, 2025