The National Alliance of People’s Movements (NAPM) and Sadbhav Manch have condemned a series of incidents of violence, intimidation and disruption targeting Christian communities during the Christmas season, describing them as part of a broader pattern of hate crimes against religious minorities in India. In a joint statement, the organisations alleged that right-wing groups were involved in multiple attacks and acts of harassment across several states in December 2025, and called on the Union government to uphold its constitutional responsibility to ensure the safety, dignity and freedom of religion of minorities.
According to the statement, incidents were reported from different parts of the country during the period leading up to and including Christmas, with carol singing, church services and community celebrations being disrupted. The organisations said that roadside vendors selling Christmas-related items, including Santa Claus caps, were assaulted in some places, while shopkeepers and citizens were allegedly pressured to boycott Christian festivals. They attributed much of this hostility to groups espousing Hindutva ideology and claimed that, in certain instances, such actions appeared to have received direct or indirect official patronage. The statement argued that these developments amounted to violations of several provisions of the Constitution, including the guarantees of equality before law, non-discrimination, freedom of expression, personal liberty and freedom of religion.
NAPM and Sadbhav Manch also pointed to what they described as a contrast between public gestures and ground realities, noting that while senior constitutional functionaries, including the Prime Minister and the Vice President, participated in Christmas celebrations, there was, in their view, insufficient action against those allegedly responsible for violence and intimidation. The organisations said this gap between symbolism and enforcement undermined constitutional values and emboldened perpetrators.
The statement listed a number of incidents reported during December 2025. In Jhabua district of Madhya Pradesh, local authorities reportedly denied permission for traditional Christmas carol singing, citing concerns over religious conversion; the order was later quashed by the Indore bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court on December 18. In Jabalpur, a lunch organised for visually challenged students at a church on December 20 was allegedly disrupted by a local political leader who accused the organisers of forced conversion. In Palakkad, Kerala, a children’s carol group was reportedly abused and assaulted on the night of December 21, with musical instruments damaged, by individuals said to be linked to right-wing organisations.
In Delhi, Christian women and children wearing Santa Claus hats were allegedly harassed in Lajpat Nagar market on December 22 by members of a right-wing group who accused them of proselytisation. Around the same time in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, roadside vendors selling Christmas items were reportedly intimidated and forced to shut down their stalls. In Pune, members allegedly affiliated with right-wing organisations reportedly threatened a petrol pump owner in Bhavani Peth over employees wearing Christmas hats, following which a police complaint was filed.
More serious violence was reported from Kanker district in Chhattisgarh, where a dispute over burial rites on December 18 escalated into mob violence, including arson of Christian homes and prayer halls, leaving several people injured. Survivors reportedly alleged instigation by right-wing groups and highlighted the vulnerability of Adivasi Christian communities in the region. In Assam’s Nalbari district, members allegedly linked to the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal were accused of disrupting Christmas Eve celebrations and vandalising decorations at St. Mary’s English School on December 24. The organisations also criticised the decision in Uttar Pradesh to keep schools open on December 25, cancelling the customary Christmas holiday while mandating celebrations for a political leader’s birth anniversary, describing it as exclusionary.
The statement said these incidents reflected a growing tendency to portray Christian religious practices as alien to Indian culture and to equate collective prayer and celebrations with forced conversion. It criticised what it described as the misuse of anti-conversion laws, including arbitrary arrests, denial of permissions and failure to protect minority rights during religious festivals, and alleged that this indicated a systemic breakdown of constitutional governance.
NAPM and Sadbhav Manch urged the Union Home Minister to issue clear directions to states and Union Territories to prevent violence and harassment against minorities, ensure prompt and impartial action against those involved in hate speech and hate crimes, provide protection to places of worship and community celebrations, compensate those who suffered loss of livelihood or damage to religious institutions, and fix accountability of police and district administrations for alleged failures. They also called for a review of anti-conversion laws, arguing that arrests should not be made without thorough investigation and judicial scrutiny.
The organisations warned that continued silence or inaction by authorities risked normalising mob violence and eroding the secular fabric of the Constitution. They asserted that incidents of communal violence were more frequent in states governed by the Bharatiya Janata Party and said that leaders at the Centre needed to address these issues substantively rather than through symbolic gestures. Reaffirming their commitment to secularism and constitutional values, NAPM and Sadbhav Manch said they stood in solidarity with victims of hate crimes and would continue to pursue democratic and legal avenues to seek justice and the restoration of the rule of law.
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