Fading Freedom of Faith in India

Just days after two Catholic nuns -- Sisters Preeti Mary and Vandana Francis -- from Kerala were arrested in Chhattisgarh on charges of forced conversion and human trafficking along with Sukhman Mandavi, a youth from Narayanpur district, following a complaint filed by Bajrang Dal activists, before the National Investigation Agency (NIA) court granted them conditional bail, priests and nuns were attacked in Odisha last week while they were returning from a prayer service on mere suspicion of engaging in religious conversion. Both the incidents were allegedly perpetrated by the Bajrang Dal workers. In yet another incident, the scheduled annual Stan Swamy memorial lecture at St. Xavier’s College in Mumbai last weekend had to be cancelled after the right-wing students’ organisation Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) raised objections, stating that Father Stan Swamy, who was arrested by the NIA in 2019, was charged under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, 1967. The Jesuit priest and tribal rights activist died in custody in 2021, though not convicted of his alleged crimes, sparking widespread criticism. As for the two Catholic nuns who were arrested last month while escorting three tribal girls to an Agra convent for jobs, they have been booked under Section 4 of the Chhattisgarh Freedom of Religion Act, 1968 (conversion) and Section 143 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (trafficking) despite the kin and one of the girls insisting that the nuns were “innocent” and they were being framed.

These are not isolated skirmishes. As per various Christian organisations, hundreds of violent attacks, including desecration of Christian places of worship, vandalism of churches and assault on missionaries, were recorded in 2024 alone. This is amid many states having passed anti-conversion laws. The law is intended only to prevent forced religious conversions and allurement, but its vague definition gives ample room for misuse, emboldening vigilante groups and anti-social elements to take the law into their own hands and create fear psychosis by targeting individuals from religious minorities on mere suspicion, leading to harassment and even loss of lives. While the Constitution of India guarantees the right to profess, practice, and propagate the religion of one’s choice, those attending prayer services are attacked, which ultimately hinders religious freedom. What is even more worrying is the indifferent attitude of the government on religion-related attacks. When Australian missionary Graham Staines and his two minor sons were brutally burnt alive in Odisha by a mob led by Bajrang Dal activist Dara Singh in 1999, the Indian leadership strongly condemned it, with the then President K.R. Narayanan describing it as "belonging to the world’s inventory of black deeds" and “a monumental aberration from the traditions of tolerance and humanity for which India is known”. The then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee condemned the incident, and a Commission of Enquiry headed by a Supreme Court judge was instituted to probe the case. The scenario we see today demands such political will and acumen from the government of the day. Decisive action is required to protect the rights guaranteed by the Constitution. Religious intolerance should not be tolerated.