Hypocrisy: Modi attends church service as Christians face attacks in BJP-ruled states

On the eve of Christmas, India witnessed a disturbing spate of targeted attacks against Christians, with churches vandalised, Christmas celebrations disrupted, and worshippers intimidated across several states.

Activists affiliated to the RSS, VHP and Bajrang Dal were accused of leading the assaults — defacing statues of the Virgin Mary and Jesus Christ, storming prayer meetings, and harassing ordinary citizens.

Notably, a majority of these incidents were reported from states ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

This comes even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended morning prayers at a cathedral in Delhi — a gesture that rang hollow for many Christians who were facing intimidation, violence and humiliation elsewhere in the country.

Over the last fortnight, Hindutva groups have unleashed a coordinated campaign to assert religious dominance during the Christmas season.

Bareilly and Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh
In Bareilly, a Hindutva mob gathered outside a church and began chanting the Hanuman Chalisa, creating an atmosphere of intimidation. In Ghaziabad, Pastor Raju Sadasivam and his wife were publicly confronted and filmed by Satyanisht Arya, who hurled derogatory remarks about Christianity and aggressively questioned their faith.

Dungarpur, Rajasthan
On December 14, RSS and Bajrang Dal members disrupted Sunday Mass at St Joseph’s Catholic Church in Bichhiwara village, storming into the premises mid-service, accusing the parish of “forced conversions” and confronting clergy and worshippers.

Haridwar, Uttarakhand
A Christmas celebration planned at a hotel run by the Uttar Pradesh Tourism Department on the banks of the Ganga was cancelled after Hindu outfits claimed the event hurt religious sentiments in the “holy city.”

Delhi
Bajrang Dal activists accused Christian women wearing Santa hats of “proselytisation” in a public place and forced them to leave, despite their insistence that they were only spreading Christmas cheer. The video went viral.

Bhubaneswar, Odisha
Street vendors selling Santa hats and Christmas accessories were threatened by men proclaiming India a “Hindu Rashtra,” telling them they had no right to sell Christian items.

Raipur, Chhattisgarh
A mall in capital city - Raipur was attacked by the Hindutva mob. Local media reported that in a chilling escalation, opposition to the burial of a Christian man culminated in arson: a mob torched his house and vandalised churches in the village.

Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh
A viral video showed a visually challenged woman being publicly abused and physically harassed during a Christmas programme by Anju Bhargava, identified as the city BJP vice-president.

‘Hindutva mob raised Jai Shri Ram’ slogans inside Church and vandalised the furniture.

In a similarly incident, in Jhabua four Catholic parishes were denied permission to conduct Christmas carol singing after local police refused to accept programme applications. The Indore Bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court had to intervene to protect the diocese’s right to conduct carols.

What makes this wave of attacks particularly alarming is the ideological climate in which they are unfolding.

“Calls for India to be declared a ‘Hindu nation’ are no longer whispered on the fringes; they are made openly, repeatedly and unapologetically by figures associated with the ruling establishment. In this climate, constitutional secularism — a foundational pillar of the Republic — is being hollowed out,” Catholic Connect, a national Catholic platform, said in a statement.

Several Christian bodies claimed that the allegations of “forced conversions” are routinely flung without evidence, and are being weaponised to justify harassment and mob violence.

Law enforcement, in many cases, appears reluctant or selectively inactive often lecturing victims instead of protecting them.

Several opposition leaders have condemned the attacks and demanded firm action against Hindutva outfits, warning that the systematic targeting of Christians is not an aberration but part of a larger project to redefine India’s identity — from a secular republic into an exclusionary majoritarian state.

"Venom and hatred are the BJP’s gift during Christmas. It is a warning to all minorities that the BJP’s parochial, hate-filled agenda cannot tolerate India’s pluralism and will relentlessly attack everyone that doesn’t fit into their hate-filled worldview," said Congress general secretary, KV Venugopal in a post on X.