New Books in Indian Religions · Marshall Poe

Hindutva and Anti-Christian Violence in Contemporary India

·20 min·1 clip

Anti-Christian violence in India has surged fourfold since 2014, with over 800 attacks last year alone.

This episode of the Nordic Asia Podcast features anthropologist Katinka Frøstad interviewing scholars Sudhir Selvaraj and Kenneth Bo Nilsen about their new academic special issue on Hindutva and anti-Christian violence in India. Their research documents a fourfold increase in such violence between 2014 and 2023, with over 800 documented attacks in the last year alone. The scholars trace historical anti-Christian sentiment to the late 1800s, linking it to colonial rule and early missionary work. They analyze distinct phases of violence, including anti-conversion laws from the 1960s and a rise in physical attacks in the late 1990s, like the murder of missionary Graham Staines. A key insight is the intentional synthesis of different violence forms today, including extrajudicial enforcement of laws and the strategic use of social media to spread stigmatization. The research highlights significant regional variation, comparing intense physical violence in states like Orissa and Chhattisgarh with more subtle, cultural strategies in Kerala and Goa. In Kerala, Hindu nationalist groups sometimes court Syrian Christians by promoting shared anti-Muslim sentiments and upper-caste identity. The analysis frames anti-conversion laws as a form of "structural violence" that appears secular in letter but targets minorities in practice. A surprising claim is that Indian Christians are now described as the "prime targets" of Hindu nationalist violence, despite Christianity being more Indianized than ever. The conversation notes that over half of Indians, and 90% of Gen Z, rely on social media for news, which adept Hindu nationalist groups exploit to mainstream their worldview. The tone is academic, analytical, and deeply concerned, focusing on empirical research and theoretical frameworks like Johan Galtung's concepts of violence. Listeners interested in contemporary Indian politics, religious conflict, and human rights will find this episode compelling. Those seeking light entertainment or partisan debate should skip this detailed, scholarly examination.

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