ICC Note:
Christians in Hunter village, located in the Palamu District of India’s Jharkhand State, are being forced by local police to pay a fine of $150.00 USD if they are caught worshiping Christianity outside of their private homes. This comes after Hindu radicals attacked the Christians and attempted to convert them by force to Hinduism. Religious freedom in India has severely deteriorated in recent years. The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) recently warned India that if the situation did not improve, USCIRF would recommend the State Department designate India a Country of Particular Concern for it religious freedom violations.
7/1/2016 India (Christian Times) – Police in India forced Christians to agree to be fined for worshiping outside their homes after Hindu extremists failed to convert them despite threats and abuse.
Christian Dalits and Hindu extremists from Hunter village, Palamu District met together at the Ramgarh police station on May 10 where the police made the Christians sign an agreement that they would only worship within the confines of their homes or pay 10,000 rupees (US$ 150).
“We were forced to sign the bond, we have no other choice as we have nowhere else to stay except in the village,” Pastor Sanjay Kumar Ravi told Morning Star News.
The Dalits are India’s lowest social caste or the “untouchables.” Aside from the imposed fine, the Hindu extremists also managed to withhold their subsidies of rice, wheat, sugar and other supplies.
“Our names were also cut off from the list where houses were allotted to the villagers by the state authorities,” Ravi said.
The pastor shared that the Christian Dalits are now confined to worshiping inside their homes and feel that their movements are closely monitored by the extremists who previously warned them to leave Christ or be beaten up.
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