Matters India Reporter
New Delhi, Dec 23, 2025: The United Christian Forum (UCF) has sounded alarm over what it described as “increasing targeted violence and hostility” against Christians across India.
In an urgent letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, the forum sought immediate intervention, including cancellation of the proposed Chhattisgarh Bandh scheduled for December 24, which it said was being organised against the Christian community.
“The bandh call is not just a protest—it is a direct targeting of a religious minority,” the letter warned. “Such actions can seriously harm social harmony, deepen inequality, and create an environment of fear and insecurity.”
According to UCF’s data, 834 incidents of violence against Christians were recorded in 2024, averaging nearly 70 per month. As of November 2025, the forum documented 706 incidents, with allegations of “fraudulent conversions” cited as the primary trigger.
Chhattisgarh and Uttar Pradesh topped the list, reporting 157 and 184 cases respectively. The forum also highlighted burial-related disputes in tribal regions, where Christians were “routinely denied burial space and, in some cases, forced to exhume the bodies of their dead.”
In 2025 alone, UCF recorded 23 burial-related incidents—19 in Chhattisgarh, two in Jharkhand, and one each in Odisha and West Bengal. The forum cited chilling examples:
On December 15 in Kanker district, a mob allegedly sought to exhume a body buried according to Christian rites. In Balod district (Nov 2025), burial was denied outright. In Odisha’s Nabarangpur (April 2025), a body was exhumed and burnt after the family reportedly refused to renounce Christianity.
“These are not isolated incidents,” UCF stressed. “They represent a disturbing pattern of persecution.”
The letter referred to a PUCL Karnataka report alleging police collusion with Hindutva groups, disruption of Christian prayer meetings, and misuse of IPC sections 295A and 298. It also noted that anti-conversion laws in 12 states are “in practice, weaponised against minorities.”
An analysis by Article 14 of FIRs in Uttar Pradesh found many cases were based on third-party complaints. Recent arrests and demolitions during prayer gatherings and Christmas celebrations in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh were also cited.
Expressing grave concern over the proposed bandh, UCF urged Shah to act swiftly: “Immediate intervention is required to safeguard constitutional rights, dignity, and social harmony.”