A pastor, his wife, and their three-year-old son have been imprisoned in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh after holding a prayer service in their home.
Pastor Harendra Singh and his wife Priya were taken into custody charged with ‘luring innocent people to Christianity’.
The couple had no choice but to bring their young child with them into prison.
This family’s plight is the latest in a series of arrests involving believers in Uttar Pradesh. One Christian leader lamented, ‘The situation has reached such a stage that holding a prayer service or reading the Bible at home can land you in jail.’
Arrested
That same day another pastor, Amarjeet Ram, and 14 other Christians were arrested during a prayer meeting in Balapur village.
And seven other Christians were arrested separately in two incidents in other districts of the state over the same period.
State law prohibits religious conversion through allurement, force, or coercion. But given the law’s catch-all wording and its intent to discriminate against religions other than Hinduism, baseless accusations can lead to charges even when no inducement has occurred.
Uttar Pradesh ranks as the state with the highest level of persecution against Christians in India. Successive states have passed similarly worded anti-conversion laws and there are calls for a national ban on attempting to convert Hindus.
Anti-conversion law
The anti-conversion laws allow Hindus to reach out to convert Muslims and Christians, but effectively forbid Christians and others from sharing their faiths.
Prayer points
Please pray that all charges will be dropped against these Christians.
Pray that Pastor Harendra and his family, as well as the other believers still in custody, will sense the tangible comforting presence of the Lord with them.
Amid the increasing religious tensions in various states of India where the anti-conversion movement is gaining momentum, please, pray that followers of Jesus will find effective ways to continue sharing the love and grace of God with those around them.
Source: Voice of the Martyrs, Canada
