New Books Network Hindutva and Anti-Christian Violence in Contemporary India
Oct 24, 2025
Kenneth Bo Nielsen, an Associate Professor of Social Anthropology at the University of Oslo, and M. Sudhir Selvaraj, a Peace Studies scholar at the University of Bradford, dive deep into the rising violence against Christians in India. They discuss the historical roots of anti-Christian sentiment, linking it to Hindu nationalism and anti-conversion laws. The guests analyze how social media amplifies cultural violence and examine state-level variations in aggression. They also highlight the challenges researchers face in studying this sensitive topic.
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Sharp Rise In Anti-Christian Violence
- Violence against Indian Christians rose sharply between 2014 and 2023, with over 800 documented incidents in one year.
- Right-wing Hindu nationalist groups carry out most attacks, making Christians a prime target of contemporary Hindu nationalist violence.
Deep Historical Roots
- Anti-Christian sentiment dates to the late 1800s and grew with colonial-era missionary activity and census anxieties.
- Post-independence measures like anti-conversion laws and denial of Dalit Christian rights represent long-term structural violence.
A Comprehensive Mode Of Repression
- The contemporary movement synthesizes direct, structural, and cultural violence, often enforced extrajudicially by Sangh-affiliated groups.
- New laws target Christian institutions' funding and revoke Dalit Christians' access to reservations, intensifying vulnerabilities.