The spokesman for the All India Catholic Union, a prominent lay organization, told the Vatican newspaper that the nation’s Christians experienced “high level of violence and intimidation” there in 2025.
John Dayal said that the United Christian Forum documented 706 incidents between January and November and that “the Evangelical Fellowship of India reported 183 incidents of violence in Uttar Pradesh and 156 in Chhattisgarh during 2025: assaults, disruptions of worship, vandalism, and false accusations of forced conversions.”
“We saw posters calling for a boycott of Christmas,” Dayal continued. “We recorded disruptions of at least 60 events across the country, beatings of Christmas carolers in Kerala, and harassment of worshippers during prayer.”
Dayal added that “hate speech by various government leaders and Hindu extremist groups like the Sangh Parivar has contributed to creating this climate. Propaganda labeling Christians as ‘outsiders to India’ has encouraged such actions.”