Vishal Arora

Christians Face 1,000 Attacks in 500 Days in Karnataka, India Minority Christians in southern Karnataka state are under an unprecedented wave of Christian persecution, having faced more than 1,000 attacks in 500 days, according to an independent investigation by a former judge of the Karnataka High Court. The spate began on Sept. 14, 2008, when…

Attacks on Christians last month in India’s Punjab state following protests against banners depicting Jesus drinking and smoking were eerily similar to the anti-Christian violence in Orissa state in 2007 and 2008, according to a fact-finding mission. “I was struck by the similarities between the attacks in northern Punjab state and the violence in eastern…

hristmas Season Attacks Worry Christians in India With at least two violent attacks and alleged “reconversion” of more than 1,700 Christians in the week leading up to Christmas, a sense of fear is growing among India’s minority Christian community. On Sunday, Hindu extremists attacked a church during worship in western Maharashtra state’s Sindhudurg district and…

The ruling party of Orissa state, which labeled last year’s mayhem in Kandhamal district as “ethnic violence,” has publicly admitted that Hindu nationalist groups were behind the killings and arson of Christians and their property. “It is learnt from the investigation into the riot cases that the members of the RSS [Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh], the…

Hundreds of tribal Christians and adherents of aboriginal religion from villages in Maharashtra state were reportedly “reconverted” to Hinduism Monday in the Mumbai suburb of Thane at a ceremony led by a Hindu nationalist cleric. Swami Narendra Maharaj’s goal was to “reconvert” 6,000 Christians in the so-called purification ceremony, reported The Hindustan Times, which put…

Only 24 people have been convicted a year after anti-Christian mayhem took place in India’s Orissa state, while the number of acquittals has risen to 95, compounding the sense of helplessness and frustration among surviving Christians. Dr. John Dayal, secretary general of the All India Christian Council, called the trials “a travesty of justice.”

Ahead of one-year remembrances of massive anti-Christian violence in the eastern state of Orissa, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has put India on its “Watch List” for the country’s violations of religious freedom, evoking strong reactions from the Indian government. USCIRF Chairman Leonard Leo said in a statement on Aug. 12 that…