A disturbing new report released today by the Evangelical Fellowship of India’s Religious Liberty Commission (EFIRLC) has documented a dramatic rise in violence and discrimination against Christians across India, with verified incidents nearly quadrupling over the past decade.
The annual report, titled “Faith at Risk: Examining Violence and Discrimination Against Christians in India,” verified 640 incidents of targeted persecution in 2024 alone, compared to just 147 incidents in 2014. The commission noted that although they received reports of over 840 incidents, resource constraints and difficulties accessing remote areas limited their ability to verify all cases.
“The scale and intensity of persecution has reached crisis levels,” said Rev. Vijayesh Lal, General Secretary of the Evangelical Fellowship of India, speaking to Christian Today. “What we’re witnessing isn’t isolated or sporadic discrimination, but a systematic pattern of violence that threatens the very fabric of India’s constitutional commitment to religious freedom.”
“Most concerning is that these verified cases likely represent only the tip of the iceberg. Many victims, particularly in rural areas, are too frightened to report attacks for fear of retaliation or further marginalisation. The actual number of incidents is almost certainly significantly higher,” Rev. Lal added.
The report identifies Uttar Pradesh as the state with the highest concentration of anti-Christian violence, documenting 188 verified incidents in 2024. Chhattisgarh followed with 150 cases, while Rajasthan (40), Punjab (38), and Haryana (34) have emerged as new hotspots of religious persecution.
According to the EFIRLC’s analysis, Christians face multiple forms of persecution, including physical assaults, disruption of worship services, church vandalism, social boycotts, denial of community resources, arbitrary arrests under anti-conversion laws, and forced displacement from their homes.
The report presents several disturbing case studies, including that of Pastor Shivbharan from Fatehpur district in Uttar Pradesh, who was beaten, forcibly shaved, and paraded through his village on 27 December. Rather than receiving protection, he was charged under the state’s anti-conversion law.
In another tragic case from Punjab’s Jalandhar district, Pastor Bhagwan Singh was attacked while conducting a prayer service on 23 January. He succumbed to severe head injuries nearly a month later, on 19 February 2024.
The commission’s findings highlight how anti-conversion laws, ostensibly designed to prevent forced conversions, are frequently misused to target Christian communities. The report documents numerous cases where pastors conducting routine prayer services were arrested and charged with “forced conversion” without evidence.
“On average, four to five churches and pastors face attacks daily across India, with incidents nearly doubling every Sunday when believers gather for worship,” Rev. Lal told Christian Today. “This pattern suggests targeted intimidation aimed at disrupting religious practice and creating a climate of fear.”
The EFIRLC notes that victims often face significant barriers to justice. Many are afraid to file complaints due to fear of police inaction or retaliation. Even when cases are registered, they frequently result in delays, acquittals, or wrongful imprisonment of victims instead of perpetrators.
In its recommendations, the Evangelical Fellowship of India has called on the Indian government to provide immediate police protection for Christian communities facing imminent threats, hold extremist groups accountable, reform the implementation of anti-conversion laws, strengthen legal safeguards for victims, and ensure fair legal proceedings.
The Religious Liberty Commission of the Evangelical Fellowship of India has been documenting incidents of persecution against Christians in India since 1998. The organisation works to promote religious freedom and advocate for the rights of religious minorities in accordance with India’s constitutional guarantees.
Evangelical Fellowship of India, founded in 1951, represents over 54 Protestant denominations encompassing more than 65,000 churches across India. As a charter member of the World Evangelical Alliance, which serves more than 600 million evangelicals globally, EFI has been instrumental in building capacity for Christians to participate in nation-building whilst protecting their constitutional rights to freedom of religion.
The full report is available at this link and at the Evangelical Fellowship of India’s website, with the organisation encouraging concerned citizens to support efforts promoting religious harmony and constitutional protections for all faith communities in India.
