Rights Group Urges Vatican to Address Surge in Anti-Christian Violence in India
New Delhi – July 21, 2025 — Amid a troubling spike in violence against Christians in India, the United Christian Forum (UCF) has submitted a detailed memorandum to the Vatican, calling for urgent international attention to the crisis, reported by “TheWire.in”. The document was handed to Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Vatican’s Secretary for Relations with States, during his ongoing visit to India.
Archbishop Gallagher, the Vatican’s equivalent of a foreign minister, arrived in India for a week-long diplomatic and pastoral mission. During his visit, he has met with both church leaders and Indian government officials, including External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar.
In a social media post following their meeting, Jaishankar said he had a “good conversation” with the archbishop, emphasizing “the importance of faith, and the need for dialogue and diplomacy to address conflicts.” However, the UCF hopes Gallagher will press further, raising specific concerns over the rise in religiously motivated attacks targeting Christians.
In its letter, the UCF highlighted that in just the first half of 2024, India recorded 834 hate crimes against Christians—an increase from 734 incidents in all of 2023. The report noted a steep rise in such attacks during the past decade, starting with just 127 incidents in 2014.
“The alarming frequency of attacks translates to more than two Christians being targeted every day in India simply for practicing their faith,” the UCF said.
The group blamed the surge on false accusations of forced religious conversions—a claim often used to justify mob violence. The most affected states include Uttar Pradesh, which reported 209 incidents, and Chhattisgarh, with 165. In many cases, victims face police inaction or hostility, with some too fearful to file complaints.
Rights activists argue that the systemic failure of law enforcement only emboldens attackers and erodes religious freedom, a constitutional guarantee increasingly under strain.
The Vatican has not yet issued an official statement in response to the UCF’s appeal.
