With almost 500 recorded incidents of violence against Christians, 2021 was tagged the "most violent year" for Christians living in India by the United Christian Forum or UCF. The UCF is an interdenominational Christian organization advocating for human rights of Christians in India.
According to International Christian Concern, the UCF had recorded 486 violent incidents of Christian persecution, an increase from the 328 incidents recorded in 2019. Throughout 2021, attacks on Christians and places of worship were witnessed and recorded in India. Towards the end of the year, the persecution incidents even dramatically increased, with almost 200 incidents being reported.
Experts believe that Christian persecution is caused by the continued proliferation of radical Hindu nationalism in India. They said the anti-minority rhetoric and the radical Hindi nationalists' campaign against Christians have created an "atmosphere of hatred and violence" for Indian Christians.
"The atmosphere of hatred spread by certain action and speeches by certain groups and the false propaganda of fraudulent and allurement means of conversion seem to be encouraging anti-social elements," UCF said in a press release. "It will not be exaggerating if it is said that these incidents are well-orchestrated and pre-planned acts by certain vested groups to divide the country on the basis or religion."
In most of the 486 recorded cases of Christian persecution reported by the UCF, most were carried out by vigilante mobs made up of religious extremists who attacked Christian communities. In many of these cases, local authorities including Indian police were either "passive spectators or active participants in the violence." Only a dismal 34 First Information Reports (FIRs), which are police documents that spark an investigation, were filed among the 486 cases reported by UCF in 2021.
In a separate report from International Christian Concern that cited the Bharat Times, Indian National Congress leader Rahul Gandhi recently condemned Christian Persecution in India. He took to Twitter to share the Irish Times story titled "Arrests, beatings and secret prayers: Inside the persecution of India's Christians" published over the weekend and adding his thoughts on the matter.
"While many in our country have their heads buried in the sand, the world is watching," Rahul wrote. "In times of injustice, silence is collusion."
The Irish Times story underscored the dramatic increase in attacks on Christians and their places of worship in India. Anti-Christian violence in India has been attributed to the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) nationalistic ideology that sees India as a Hindu nation and nothing else.
The BJP took power in 2014 and since then, attacks on Christians in India had consistently increased throughout the years. Religious intolerance has been sparked by the BJP party's politicians who use the anti-Christian rhetoric for political gain, thus creating an atmosphere of hostility and intolerance against Christians in India.
Moreover, there has been widespread impunity enjoyed by those who carry out anti-Christian violence, leading radical Hindu nationalists to feel justified and "allowed" by the Indian government to persecute Christians.
