7/14/2025 India (International Christian Concern) — Christians’ property rights and access to land in the South Asian nations of India, Nepal, and Pakistan continue to erode.

In India, damage to Christian-owned properties, including homes and churches, continues to be documented. Violence against Christians has surged in the nation in part due to the idea of Hindu supremacy, or Hindutva, which has continued to take root in the country.

According to the Federation of Indian American Christian Organizations of North America (FIACONA) in 2023, statistics reveal that intimidation of Christians is deliberate.

“The data shows that violence against Christians in India is planned and orchestrated by Hindutva nationalist political parties as a part of a larger design to create a Hindu-only state, to the exclusion of the people of Abrahamic faiths,” FIACONA stated.

Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) reported that a resolution was passed on Nov. 17, 2024, by several village councils in Chhattisgarh state, India, effectively trampling the rights of Christian property owners. Christ followers were given the choice to either renounce their faith or lose their property. The declaration, which affected about 100 Christ followers, stated that if Christians didn’t abandon Christianity, their land could be looted.

The Christians filed a written report with local police the following day, Nov. 18, and authorities visited the affected villages. When police arrived, a mob of roughly 1,500 people had already taken the Christians’ harvest. The mob proceeded to confront the Christians and police to demand that the Christians abandon their faith in Christ or leave the land.

Police reportedly offered no assistance to the Christians on that day, but two days later, authorities allowed a First Action Report to be filed. About 40 Christians, whose property had been looted, decided not to return to the village, but rather to live in a church in Michwar.

CSW President Mervyn Thomas condemned the looting of Christian lands in Chhattisgarh, India.

“CSW condemns the efforts of village authorities in Chhattisgarh to effectively outlaw Christianity in their villages, either by forcing villagers to renounce their faith or to leave their homes entirely,” Thomas stated.

In April 2025, ICC reported that six Christian families were forcefully evicted from their homes in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh for refusing to leave Christianity. Villagers went into Christ followers’ homes, removed their belongings, and used force to throw the Christians out of their homes. The Christians were made to live in a forest.

Additionally, a Christian pastor, Subhash Baghel, in February 2025, was allegedly denied burial for three weeks in Chhattisgarh state due to his Christian background.

In Nepal, Christians have historically had a difficult time burying their dead in the Kathmandu Valley. The U.S. Embassy in Nepal stated in 2022 that Christians also encounter obstacles in obtaining the proper registration to run religious organizations.

“Christian groups continued to report difficulties operating as nongovernmental organizations … and multiple religiously affiliated organizations reported increased challenges renewing or registering their organizations during [2022],” the Embassy stated. “Christian groups said they [also] continued to face difficulties buying or using land for burials, especially within the Kathmandu Valley.”

In Pakistan, blasphemy laws have been egregiously abused as a means of taking land away from Christians and other minority groups.

Human Rights Watch reported in June 2025 that poor Christians are often the targets of property seizures.

“Blasphemy accusations against Christians and Ahmadis in particular have often forced entire communities to flee their homes and neighborhoods,” the report stated. “Because many minority communities in Pakistan live in informal, low-income settlements without titles to the land, their forced exodus leaves their property up for easy seizure.”

The displacement of Christians from their homes is a growing form of persecution and intense intimidation of Christ followers. Blasphemy laws and militant anti-Christian religious groups continue to be a growing trend and contributing factor to Christian suffering and discrimination.

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