Hostility towards Christians in India is escalating, according to Release International.

Over the past four years, nearly 1,700 individuals have been arrested under anti-conversion laws in Uttar Pradesh alone, according to the Times of India. This state has registered 835 cases primarily targeting Christians and is now pushing to tighten these laws further.

A new bill proposes increasing the maximum penalty for fraudulent or forced conversions to 20 years, with the possibility of life imprisonment.

The rise in anti-conversion laws reflects a broader trend of growing Hindu religious nationalism. Since the election of the nationalist BJP government in 2014, intolerance towards Christians has surged. The BJP's re-election in June has emboldened Hindu militants, and states governed by the BJP are at the forefront of enforcing anti-conversion laws.

The Religious Liberty Commission of the Evangelical Fellowship of India (EFI) reported a record 601 cases of persecution against Christians in 2023, marking a 45 per cent increase. The United Christian Forum (UCF) documented 361 attacks against Christians in the first half of 2024. These laws, which disproportionately target Christians, are part of a broader Hindutva nationalist agenda aimed at maintaining India as a Hindu nation.

Paul Robinson, the CEO of UK-based Release International, which serves persecuted Christians worldwide said: "Over the past ten years, we have seen growing attacks against Christians in India, as the climate of intolerance towards other faiths grows increasingly stormy.

"The rising tide of anti-conversion legislation just legitimises the prejudice and violence that Christians are facing. These laws empower militants and extremists and must be repealed."