India: BJP politician speaks out against Christian missionaries

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India | 07 May 2018

On 22 April 2018 Bharat Singh, an Uttar Pradesh parliamentarian of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) made a series of remarks against Christians which were widely published in India"s media, with quotes appearing in the Indian Express, The Hindu and NDTV, among others. AsiaNews also quoted Bharat Singh: "Christian missionaries are a threat to the unity and integrity of the nation. Thanks to them, democracy in India has been weakened." Singh claims "Christian missionaries control the Congress [the secular party, in opposition]. Sonia Gandhi, the mother of Congress president Rahul Gandhi works according to the indications of these missionaries. These missionaries are a threat to the unity of the nation." He also said that democracy in the north-eastern states has been "weakened" because of the "conversion of people from there to Christianity." "The Northeast - he said - is under the influence of Christian missionaries. Democracy has weakened due to the conversion of people to Christianity. The conspiracy plots put in place by these missionaries are a threat to the country." Rolf Zeegers, persecution analyst at World Watch Research, says that Bharat Singh is showing the true face of the BJP in its aggressive tone towards Christians. Like many other Hindu nationalists, he regards Christianity as alien (i.e. non-Indian) - and thus a threat to the unity and integrity of India. Although he did not say so explicitly, it is clear that he wants Christianity to disappear from the country." Rolf Zeegers continues: "It is quite rare that politicians make statements with such blatant anti-Christian content. The fact that many media outlets in India quoted his words only adds to the pressure on Christians. The BJP has been in power since May 2014, and due to the popularity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi they have expanded their power base. There is currently no real alternative to the BJP in India. The Church in India will have to prepare for increasing pressure."