A family who recently converted to Christianity was brutally attacked in Chhattisgarh, India, leaving one woman dead.
On Monday, 22-year-old Bindu Sodhi and her family were preparing their field to sow rice when they were assaulted by a group of religious fanatics that included members of her extended family.
Sodhi’s mother, brother and younger sister escaped the attackers, but she was captured, repeatedly stabbed to death and left in the field.
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Her family filed a complaint with the police, but sources say a case has yet to be officially registered. Sodhi’s body remains in the local morgue as her family awaits further proceedings.
Christian leaders speaking out against the violence report that atrocities committed against believers in Chhattisgarh state have reached alarming levels. They say the police have taken no action in the murder of Christians but have detained dozens of people insisting on a burial for Sodhi.
“We met with the police chief, were told he would look into it, but the stunning reality is that Christians have been detained daily,” said a local Christian activist. “The order for protection of Christians has little to no impact. The situation is terrible.”
Sodhi’s death is one of many recent attacks against Christians in the area. On June 12, seven Christian families in a nearby village were assaulted. In May, another Christian was beaten and stabbed to death, then buried by his assailants.
Local Christian leaders added that Hindu mobs surround known Christian areas, accompanied by government officials, then assault them for refusing to forsake their faith. Many of those attacked have been women and children, and one youth remains in the hospital due to his injuries.
On June 24, hundreds of Christians led by the Chhattisgarh Christian Forum (CCF) carried out a massive protest in response to the anti-Christian violence, demanding an end to Hindu fundamentalist attacks and police inaction.
The mob violence has been driven by the ideology of Hindutva which seeks to make India a purely Hindu nation. Anti-Christian populism has added an extra element to Hindu extremism, resulting in targeted violence and displacement. In 2023, organized mob violence against Christian tribes left hundreds dead and more than 200 destroyed.
Christians make up less than 2% of Chhattisgarh state’s 25 million people.
Anto Akkara and Peter are writers for Global Christian Relief (GCR), America’s leading watchdog organization focused on the plight of persecuted Christians worldwide. In addition to equipping the Western church to advocate and pray for the persecuted, GCR works in the most restrictive countries to protect and encourage Christians threatened by faith-based discrimination and violence.
