ICC Note: In the course of four days, three Christian evangelists and pastors associated with the Mission India group were arrested in separate incidents. In each case, false claims of forced conversions were used to justify the arrests. Across India, Christians are facing an increase in religious intolerance and religiously motivated violence. This has led India to being ranked the 11^th most difficult country for Christians in the world.

08/03/2018 India (MNN) – It was an alarming week for Mission India last week. They learned that over the course of four days, three separate ministry partners were arrested.

Mission India’s local partners share the Gospel in their communities through Adult Literacy Classes, Children’s Bible Clubs, and Church Planter Training.

A missions worker with Mission India points out that while their ministry partners are no strangers to persecution, this series of arrests was unusual.

“To have three partners arrested like that in quick succession was somewhat rare for us to see. Basically, each one of them [was] arrested for, as people would say, forcing those who aren’t Christians to be converted into Christians. It’s typically a line that we see from time to time being extended to our partners and it’s just an easy way to kind of rile up everyone.”

He says, “Some people were threatened by mobs and in some cases, the police were protecting them from the mobs themselves.”

Two of the three ministry partners were released after lengthy discussions with the police. One man is still in police custody. He was forcibly brought to the police after anti-Christian extremists became enraged by rumors of a “Christian conversion house” in the home of a new Christian family.

According to Open Doors’ World Watch List, India is the 11th harshest country for Christian persecution. That ranking has gone up in recent years as persecution increases.

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For interviews with William Stark, ICC’s Regional Manager, please contact Olivia Miller, Communications Coordinator: [email protected].