India (MNN) — Even a pending legislative bill can stir up danger for India’s Christians today.
On September 9, 2025, India’s Rajasthan State passed its latest anti-conversion law. In the weeks since, at least nine documented incidents of attacks or harassment against Christians have happened in the state.
“While this law has actually not been signed by the governor and actually made law, it has certainly emboldened the fanatic Hindu groups there,” says John Pudaite with Bibles For The World.
Anti-conversion laws can easily be used to target Christian and Muslim minorities. Even something like giving to the poor or playing music at a worship gathering can lead to accusations of forcing someone to convert. Accusations can lead to mob attacks, fines, lengthy imprisonment, and legal battles.
This surge of mistreatment of Christians in Rajasthan isn’t surprising. It’s a reminder to pray for protection for these brothers and sisters, and that attackers will see the light of Christ as believers respond. The challenges that come from this are serious.
(Stock photo courtesy of Ahmed Fahmi via Unsplash)
“[It forces] them to come up with a lot of money to bail out the pastors and Christians who have been charged, and to have to expend the legal fees to defend their case, and the time and resources that are involved,” Pudaite says.
The accusations are usually unfounded. “While twelve states have these laws, and there have been hundreds of arrests made under these anti-conversion laws, not a single [case] has stuck in court,” he says. “Even though you have states like Uttarakhand that have now increased the possible punishment to life imprisonment for a forcible or fraudulent conversion, not a single charge has stuck.”
The good news is that a roadblock came up in September against anti-conversion laws. India’s Supreme Court called for nine of the 12 Indian states with such laws to respond to petitions challenging them. The Court says it will consider granting a stay on their enforcement. (More on that here.)
“That is a very, very important step that the Supreme Court has taken in asking the states to basically show cause [for] why they have passed these laws — really holding to the Indian Constitution, which guarantees freedom of religion,” says Pudaite.
Pray for justice and truth to be upheld by India’s Supreme Court, which will be under pressure from Hindutva voices to defend anti-conversion laws.
Header photo: Central Wing of the Supreme Court of India where the Chief Justice’s courtroom is situated. (Photo courtesy of Subhashish Panigrahi via Wikimedia Commons – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0)
