An atmosphere of violence and fear is being brewed up against Christians in Karnataka, with another attack on a place associated with Christianity coming to light from Chikkaballapur city where an old icon of Jesus Christ has been vandalized by miscreants a day after there was high drama witnessed in the state assembly over The Karnataka Right to Freedom of Religion Bill, 2021which is popularly being referred to as the “Anti Conversion bill”.

A group of Christians held a protest in Bangalore yesterday against anti-Christian sentiment and violence building up in the state. 

The logic behind the bill is to stop the “enticement” or “forceful” conversion of people to a religion, although it has been a persistent sticking point with the right wing that “Hindus” must be ‘stopped’ from converting to other religions which is being posited as an act of force or coercion.

39 attacks of threats and violence have bee recorded by the Evangelical Fellowship of India (EFI) against Christians from January to November this year from Karnataka alone, according to a report by the BBC.

PUCL (People’s Union for Civil Liberties) President Prof Y J Rajendra has said that the Bill violate Article 25 of the Indian Constitution which guarantees freedom of religion.