Hindu nationalist groups in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh are utilizing the messaging app WhatsApp, to target Christian minorities and pressure them to convert to Hinduism.
In the Bastar region of Chhattisgarh, Christian communities are increasingly facing challenges from organizations such as the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), also known as the World Hindu Council. According to reports from Rest of World, these groups leverage WhatsApp to swiftly mobilize mobs that confront Christians during vulnerable times, especially funerals, demanding that they renounce their faith.
The report highlights that these attacks have intensified since Prime Minister Narendra Modi of the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party took office in 2014. This increase can be linked to the expansion of internet access and the availability of affordable data throughout the country, particularly affecting the Bastar region, where internet users now outnumber those in urban areas.
Furthermore, the VHP has begun providing its members with basic smartphones, including models from brands like Vivo and Samsung, allowing them to utilize WhatsApp effectively. This access to technology has enabled the VHP to communicate and coordinate actions rapidly across a vast area.
The VHP, established in 1964 to counter ideologies it deems alien—including Islam, Christianity, and communism—maintains a significant presence throughout India. In Bastar, the organization boasts thousands of members organized into WhatsApp groups covering about 50 villages. Each group is managed by directors who filter information up the chain of command and implement directives that come down.
“With WhatsApp, what took us three days now takes us less than an hour,” stated Hari Sahu, a VHP leader in the Jagdalpur area of the Bastar region. These groups actively monitor Christian activities and coordinate interventions during funerals.
In India, Hindus generally practice cremation, and mobs organized through WhatsApp attempt to approach Christian families before funerals commence, often preventing burials until conversions are secured. Ghasiram Baghel, a 38-year-old farmer and VHP member, revealed that he manages an informant network via WhatsApp across approximately 50 villages and admitted to coordinating the destruction of a site intended for a new church.
According to an activist from the Chhattisgarh chapter of the People’s Union for Civil Liberties, the police are often reluctant to take action against the VHP due to its influence and the fear of being perceived as anti-Hindu. Moreover, the encrypted nature of WhatsApp messaging complicates efforts for authorities to monitor these groups.
According 2019 blog post from the London School of Economics titled “WhatsApp Vigilantes: An Exploration of Citizen Reception and Circulation of WhatsApp Misinformation Linked to Mob Violence in India,” the circumstances are similar in other parts of India.
The report noted, “In the last five years, under the Hindu Nationalist BJP government and in states where the BJP and allies rule, vigilante mobs using targeted violence against Muslims, Dalits, Christians, Adivasis (indigenous people), and women have increased exponentially.”
In addition, the mobilization of lynch mobs based on WhatsApp rumors regarding alleged child kidnappers or kidney snatchers has led to over 40 murders since 2017. Reports indicated that in 2021, there were at least 486 incidents of violence targeting Christians, a trend that continued into 2022 with nearly 600 documented attacks.
By 2023, the number of such incidents increased even further, significantly exceeding 600 and establishing a new alarming record, according to the United Christian Forum based in Delhi.
