Churches Shut After Easter Attacks as Revival and Persecution Intensify in India
by Worthy News Washington D.C. Bureau Staff
(Worthy News) – More than a month after coordinated attacks on Easter Sunday by Hindu nationalist groups, several Christian churches in Gujarat remain closed, exposing a rising tide of religious persecution even as India experiences significant Christian revival over the past two decades.
On April 20, mobs from the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) and its youth wing Bajrang Dal disrupted services at multiple Pentecostal churches in Ahmedabad and Surat, targeting packed congregations during Easter worship. Pastor Dinesh Parmar, who leads Western India Pentecostal Church in Ahmedabad, said about 25 extremists stormed the service with sticks, shouting Hindu slogans and accusing attendees of forced conversions. Videos of frightened children and worshippers responding with “Hallelujah” as attackers chanted “Jai Shree Ram” quickly went viral.
In Surat, a similar assault left Pastor Ganesh Koli and Assistant Pastor Benjamin Gamit beaten and bloodied. “They didn’t say a word. They just entered and started hitting us,” Koli said. One woman was injured trying to shield the pastors.
Though police were called in both cities, officers were reluctant to file formal complaints. In Ahmedabad, authorities allegedly asked church members to delete videos. Only after the footage spread online was a complaint filed — and a counter-complaint by Hindu nationalists followed. In Surat, police held victims and attackers for hours and forced a compromise, even as 200 Hindu extremists surrounded the station. Pastors were pressured into withdrawing their cases to avoid future targeting.
Since the attacks, landlords have refused to rent space to churches, forcing pastors to halt physical gatherings. Pastor Parmar has moved services online, but most of his congregation — poor and uneducated — cannot join. “This is what we chose when we accepted Christ,” he said. “If we live, we live for Him. If we die, we die for Him.”
The recent violence comes amid a remarkable 20-year revival movement in India, where tens of thousands of independent house churches have emerged, particularly among Dalits and tribal communities. However, this growth has fueled backlash from Hindu nationalist groups who accuse Christians of “conversions by force” — claims widely dismissed by believers and human rights advocates.
India now ranks 11th on Open Doors’ 2025 World Watch List of countries where Christians face the most persecution, a steep rise from 31st in 2013 before Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power. Under his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), persecution has escalated, with pastors harassed, prayer meetings raided, and believers driven out of villages.
“Since Christmas, authorities have been pressuring all small and house churches to shut down,” said Christian leader Reta Gamit. “People are afraid to even attend prayer meetings.”
Despite the threats, pastors like Parmar remain committed. “Our Constitution guarantees religious freedom,” he said. “But this is a time when the law is being ignored, and some feel they are above it.”
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