Nationalists in India demolish statues of Christ and burn statues of Santa Claus

India’s Christian minority faced violence from Indian nationalists before Christmas.

For example, in the city of Agra in the state of Uttar Pradesh, nationalists burned statues of Santa Claus near a school owned by missionaries, and in the city of Ambala on Christmas Day, a church was destroyed and a statue of Jesus Christ was demolished. .
According to extremists, Christians use the popularity of the holiday to preach Christianity among the population.

In another state, Assam, far-right Hindus disrupted Christmas mass at the local church, demanding all Hindus leave the building immediately.
An activist stated during the incident that everyone except Christians should be prevented from celebrating Christmas. The extremists were arrested by the police.

“With the arrival of December, Christian missionaries are particularly active,” said a local leader of the far-right Bajrang Dal, also known as the Hanuman Army.
“Using the pretext of Christmas and New Year and forcing Santa Claus to give gifts to children, they are attracting children to Christianity.”

Representatives of the country’s Christian community reported that such cases are indicative of a general trend in relations between the Christian minority and the growing influence of Indian nationalists.

India is home to 27.8 million Christians (2.3% of the country’s total population).
In particular, they are the majority in the states of Nagaland, Mizoram and Meghalaya. In addition to the large number of converts as a result of the activity of Protestant missionaries, there has been an orthodox tradition in Kerala since the 4th century, according to legend, brought to India by the Apostle Thomas himself.

Although Christianity, within the limits of its antiquity and plurality, is the traditional religion of the country, in recent times, due to the intensification of nationalist sentiments, the incidence of violence against this religious minority has increased, and the frequency of ecclesiastical organizations and missionaries has increased. She began to face the opposition of the state and the people more often.
For example, according to a report by Persecution Relief, the number of crimes against Christians increased by 60% from 2016 to 2019.