39 Hate Crime Incidents In Karnataka Against Christians In 2021: PUCL Report

Karnataka reported 39 hate crime incidents against Christians in 2021, as per the information provided in the People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) report titled 'Criminalising the Practice of Faith'. PUCL alleged that Hindutva organisations carried out all these detrimental acts on the Christian community. In many cases, the police were found to be cooperating with these groups secretly and unlawfully, reports The Indian Express. PUCL made the report after speaking to 39 pastors. They added that several such incidents have gone undocumented too. According to Hindustan Times,

"There have been attacks in Karnataka that have been sponsored by the state. Not only has the state failed to book perpetrators, but also booked the victims in several cases. We demand that the government should follow the Tahseen Poonawalla judgement and make sure justice is done to them (the Christian community). We also want to ensure that the (Anti-conversion) bill is opposed strongly," said a former head of Amnesty International India.

The PUCL Report On Hate Crimes Against Christians In Karnataka

As per the report, in today's Karnataka, Christians right to practice their religion is curtailed, using the language of 'conversion'. The report also enclosed a statistical proportion of the Christian population in India and Karnataka according to the Census of India. The statistics showed a reduction in the share of the Christian population with time, indicating a lack of proof to support the claim of forced mass conversions.

Testimonies Of The Pastors

The testimony of Pastor Sanket on the attack in Hubbali on October 17, 2021, said that there were people from Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad who sat during the Christian prayer meeting chanted bhajans and slogans later on and accused Sanket of forcing someone to convert to Christianity. The mob grew in number believers were beaten up. Testimony of Pastor Jim on the attack in Yadgir says that the police refused to file a complaint against the mob, which verbally abused and caused disruption in the prayer meeting. When he was leading Sunday prayer one evening, Pastor John said that a few people entered the church and shouted, "We will burn you".

As per Article 25 of the constitution, all persons have the freedom and right to practise, profess, and propagate religion subject to public order, morality and health. The instances reported by PUCL is a clear violation of their rights as Indian citizens.

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