Churches under increasing pressure in India

In India, Christians are increasingly under pressure. Anti-conversion laws are now present in 13 of India’s states, making it very difficult to evangelize and all-too-easy to accuse church leaders of proselytizing, leading to legal trouble.

And now, two disturbing incidents are showing how much these regulations are changing church operation, and even the freedom to worship in the world’s most populous country.

In Chhattisgarh, a state in central India, more than 10 churches in one district have posted notices asking non-Christians to enter church property at their own risk.

The notices are clear: “Only Christians are allowed to enter church for prayers. If others come of their own free will, they will be held responsible for their choice.”

It’s clear that strict anti-conversion laws are changing church operations and Christians' worship in the country. This has been driven because there is real fear of backlash from extremist Hindu nationalist groups.

Church authorities said the notices were installed primarily as a precautionary measure to avoid action under the 2026 Chhattisgarh Freedom of Religion Act.

The notices appeared on the heels of the submission of more than 1,000 self-declaration forms to the district administration by non-Christians saying they were visiting churches voluntarily. The forms include details about the applicant and the place of worship and require applicants to declare that they have not been subjected to undue influence, threat, force, deception or inducement, and that no instance of forced conversion has come to their notice.

These forms have also been in use in Maharashtra, a state in mid-central India. An anti-conversion law was implemented there in late August and has led local pastors to take a radical step: ask worshipers to fill out a “self-declaration” form, stating that they are attending prayer meetings of their own free will.

Similar to the forms in Chhattisgarh State, these “self-declaration” forms state that worshipers attend prayer meetings by their own “choice” and that they are not under any “pressure, inducement, temptation, lure or threat of any kind.” It further states that their decision to attend church is “completely personal, voluntary and independent.”

The form also requires worshippers to provide identity documents and photographs, adding another layer of documentation to their participation in church activities.

Pastors and church representatives say the declarations are intended to demonstrate that attendance at prayer meetings is voluntary.

But both new measures underscore the growing concern among Christian congregations over how new legal provisions could affect their religious activities and interactions with worshipers. Posting a sign or asking churchgoers to sign a form are distressing signs of India’s decreasing religious freedom.

“Christian leaders and believers have become concerned as a result of these reports regarding the freedom and safety of Christian worship,” shares Open Doors local partner Priya Sharma.* “We request prayers for the church in India, that it may receive protection, courage, wisdom, justice and peace and for the freedom of every person to practice their faith without fear.”