(ZENIT News / Calcuta, 01.19.2025).- The Christian community finds itself grappling with increasing threats to its existence and rights. Recent developments in Arunachal Pradesh, one of India’s most diverse and remote regions, have raised serious concerns among human rights advocates and religious organizations alike. The government’s decision to enforce a dormant anti-conversion law from 1978 and ongoing calls to strip Christian converts of their Scheduled Tribe status reflect a broader strategy to curtail the growth of Christianity among tribal populations.
Anti-Conversion Law: A Long-Dormant Threat Revived
Arunachal Pradesh, home to 26 major tribes and over 100 sub-tribes, is a melting pot of religious and cultural diversity. However, the state’s anti-conversion law, dormant for decades, is set to be enforced in 2025. Originally enacted to curb religious conversions “by force, inducement, or fraudulent means,” the law has resurfaced in a context where Christians make up over 30% of the state’s population, closely followed by Hindus and adherents of indigenous faiths.
Critics argue that such laws, though framed in neutral language, are weaponized to target Christians and Muslims. The legislation requires anyone converting to another religion to report the act to local authorities, opening the door to potential harassment. Pastors and evangelists could face severe penalties, including up to ten years in prison, for facilitating conversions—a chilling deterrent for religious freedom in the region.
Tribal Identity and Religious Conversion: A Battle for Rights
The crux of the controversy lies in the intersection of religious conversion and tribal identity. India’s Scheduled Tribes, also known as “adivasis”, are entitled to affirmative action benefits, including reserved seats in educational institutions, legislatures, and public employment. However, many political factions, particularly those aligned with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its ideological parent, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), argue that converting to Christianity—or Islam—should disqualify individuals from such privileges.
This argument is not new. The 1950 Presidential Order already denied similar benefits to Dalit Christians and Muslims, marking a precedent for discriminatory policies. Recent calls to extend such exclusions to tribal Christians in Arunachal Pradesh mirror a broader agenda to marginalize minority religious groups while consolidating Hindu identity.
Rising Violence and Persecution
The resurgence of anti-Christian sentiment is not confined to Arunachal Pradesh. Across India, attacks against Christians are on the rise. Data from the United Christian Forum (UCF) reveals 834 incidents of violence against Christians in 2024, a sharp increase from 734 the previous year. These acts include the destruction of over 400 churches in Manipur during ongoing ethnic violence and forced “reconversions” to Hinduism under the guise of “ghar wapsi” (“return to home”).
In Manipur, more than 70,000 people, predominantly members of the Kuki-Zo tribe, have been displaced since violence erupted in May 2023. Reports of Christians being coerced into signing affidavits renouncing their faith and the burning of Bibles underline the alarming scale of religious intolerance.
A Parallel Network: Hindutva’s Push in Tribal Areas
While Christian missionaries have long worked in India’s tribal regions, the RSS has aggressively expanded its influence, promoting Hindutva (Hindu nationalism) as a unifying ideology. Through a network of schools and cultural organizations, the RSS has sought to assimilate indigenous tribal religions into a broader Hindu framework. This ideological campaign positions tribal Christians as outsiders, further fueling communal tensions.
The RSS’s strategy mirrors its efforts in other states like Odisha, where violence against Christians culminated in the 2008 Kandhamal riots. In Arunachal Pradesh, this playbook includes promoting Hindi as a common language and establishing RSS-affiliated schools to instill nationalist ideals in tribal communities.
A National Crossroads
The developments in Arunachal Pradesh are emblematic of a larger struggle across India. The country’s secular constitution guarantees freedom of religion, yet laws and policies increasingly reflect the growing influence of Hindu nationalist ideologies. For India’s Christians, particularly those from marginalized communities, the fight for equality and religious freedom is far from over.
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