05/31/2019 India (International Christian Concern) – Attacks on Christians and other religious minorities continue to be reported in India as Narendra Modi was sworn in for second term as the country’s prime minister. These reports come only a week after Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won a landslide victory in India’s national elections.

The ceremony took place at the presidential palace in New Delhi and was presided over by President Ram Nath Kovind. In addition to Modi being sworn in as prime minister, 57 other BJP leaders were sworn in as ministers whose assignments will be established in the coming days.

As Modi and the BJP continued their victory lap in New Delhi, instances of Christian persecution continue to be reported across the country. In Chhattisgarh, three Christian homes were ransacked by Hindu radicals after they refused to publically recant their Christian faith. In Tripura, the home of a Christian was vandalized because it was being used as a gathering place for Christian worship.

Speaking to Asia News, A.C. Michael, Director of Development at the Alliance Defending Freedom India, said, “The situation is dramatic. If in 2018 we had an average of 20 cases of violence against Christians, in the first four months of 2019 the average is 30.”

With the BJP reclaiming power in India, many minorities fear religious intolerance and religiously motivated violence will increase. So far, the first few days of the BJP’s second term have shown these fears to be credible.

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