Pastor Charged in India for Supposed Illegal Conversion of Hindus
A pastor of Indian descent who lives in the United Kingdom was charged in India for allegedly illegally converting Hindus to the Christian faith.
But the law under which he was charged had not yet entered effect at the time of his charging.
Pastor Pankaj Devnoor, associated with the Anglican Episcopal Church International in Manchester, United Kingdom, had charges filed against him on Aug. 7, per a report from International Christian Concern.
He had been attending a 10-day church event in Pune, Maharashtra, India, when a crowd of Hindu nationalists accused Devnoor of breaking the forthcoming law.
The Hindus entered the premises where the church event was occurring and claimed Devnoor was forcibly converting their coreligionists.
The police were summoned to the event.
One of the Hindu protesters claimed Devnoor was using Hindu music and terminology to lure them into becoming Christians.
The charges were dropped after it became clear that the anti-conversion law was slated to enter into effect on Aug. 28.
While it had received presidential assent on July 31, the law was not in effect when Devnoor was charged.
Despite the charges being dropped, Devnoor is not currently allowed to leave India without court permission.
He must also check in regularly with a local police station.
The legal team representing Devnoor disputed the claims that he was trying to forcibly convert people, noting that he was merely participating in a church prayer event.
The case against Devnoor is one of many recent examples of Hindu nationalist mobs trying to weaponize sympathetic police against Christians.
Open Doors notes that “to religious nationalists, to be Indian is to be Hindu, and that leaves no place for Christianity.”
“The result is systemic discrimination and violence, particularly against converts,” the ministry says.
“Social media is gravely exacerbating the problem, with accusations, disinformation and attacks often going viral and perpetuating false narratives around Christianity. Evangelistic activities are extremely risky.”
Indian states have increasingly been passing anti-conversion laws, threatening Christians with arrest and prosecution if they are accused of forcible conversion even during a regular church event, such as a prayer meeting.
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