In a troubling incident of religious unrest, Christian worshippers in the city of Nohar, within Rajasthan’s Hanumangarh District, found themselves under attack while gathered for a church service on September 28. The disturbance illustrates mounting pressures faced by Christian communities in the region.
According to 45-year-old Pastor Wazir Singh, the assembly was in worship around 10 a.m. when a mob—first led by Hindu women and followed by Hindu men—entered the church building. The group confronted the congregation, forcing Pastor Singh to sit and, at gunpoint of intimidation, demand that he teach about Hindu deities such as Lord Rama and Lord Ganesha rather than Christ. They also sought to compel the reading of Hindu scriptures such as the Ramayana or Mahabharata. When Singh refused, citing his faith and constitutional rights to freedom of religion, the mob escalated the situation by summoning the police.
Following the incident, Singh and four other Christians—including his wife, Jaspal Parmar—were named in a formal police complaint filed under FIR No. 383. The alleged charges include “promoting enmity between different religious groups” and “malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings.”
Singh was taken to the Nohar police station, held overnight, and remanded by the Sub-Divisional Magistrate on October 3. Although he was granted bail on October 4, the legal process has left the pastor and his family in a precarious financial and personal position.
Mob Violence and Harassment of Families
Pastor Singh reports that after his arrest, the mob turned explicitly towards his family and the broader Christian gathering. His wife, Metu Devi, recalled that when they answered the door of the church-residence compound, the men and women in the crowd stormed inside and physically assaulted Christians, including women and children.
The Christians inside the residence—14 in total—fled without personal belongings and took refuge temporarily at another Christian household half a mile away. Upon being discovered, they were forced to relocate again. Eventually, Metu Devi and her two sons (ages 14 and 10) fled by motorbike to Haryana under cover of darkness.
Singh says authorities also confiscated his phone, home, and security identity passes—and these remain unrecovered post-bail. A refugee of prior persecution from Haryana, Singh had moved to Rajasthan some 30 months earlier and indicated the latest assault as the most extreme he has faced.
Context: Anti-Conversion Laws and Rising Persecution
The incident comes just weeks after the passage of Rajasthan’s new anti-conversion law on September 9. Numerous civil-society groups warned the legislation would infringe constitutional rights. The law entered into force on October 29, making Rajasthan the 12th Indian state with such restrictions.
Meanwhile, the international Christian advocacy organisation Open Doors places India at No. 11 on its 2025 World Watch List of countries where Christians face the most severe persecution—ascending from No. 31 in 2013.
Call for Prayer and Support
Pastor Singh and his family remain displaced and without income. “We looked at our children and wondered how we will sustain, but then we found comfort in God’s Word that says He will never forsake us,” Metu Devi said.
Christian pastors, ministries, and congregations worldwide are urged to pray for protection, legal support, and a resolution to the harassment faced by Singh’s congregation and others in similar circumstances in India.
Source: Adapted from The Christian Post, originally reporting from Morning Star News.