by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent
(Worthy News) - Extremist Hindus in India’s Chhattisgarh state last week hacked to death a female relative of theirs because she left Hinduism to follow Christ, International Christian Concern (ICC) reports.
A Christian for four years, Bindu Sori was murdered by fanatical Hindu relatives who attacked her with axes as she worked in her family’s field in the Toylanka village in Dantewada district, Chhattisgarh on June 24, ICC reports.
Sori and other members of her family who had left Hinduism to follow Christ had been repeatedly harassed and threatened by their Hindu relatives, ICC reports. Sori’s Hindu relatives recently started another fight with her and her Christian family, arguing they had no right to work on their land now that they are no longer Hindus.
“The relatives warned Sori’s family that there would be dire consequences if they worked in the field during the coming monsoon season,” ICC said in its report. “As the rainy season started, the Sori’s family went out to plow and sow the field,” ICC said. “Enraged, the fanatic relatives attacked them with arrows and axes. The tractor driver and others managed to flee, but Sori could not. Two men caught her, attacked her with axes, and killed her.”
In a website report about the situation facing Christian converts in India, the Open Doors international Christian advocacy organization states: “Christians who convert from Hinduism are the most vulnerable to persecution across India, particularly communities who have faced historical oppression or discrimination such as Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.”
The persecution of Christians (and other non-Hindu faith groups) in India has intensified since the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party came to power in 2014: India now ranks 11 on the Open Doors World Watch List 2024 of the top 50 countries where Christians are persecuted.