Five of the six pastors have lacerated scars as they were imprisoned in central India on July 20 after false allegations of forced conversion were attacked for being detained, sources said.
Rev. Moses Logan of Billai in Daag district, Chhattisgarh, said the prison and security guards at Daag Prison defeated five other pastors on July 21.
“We did nothing — was there any crime established against us?” Pastor Logan told Morning Star News. “They seized the opportunity, and the trial and evidence also mercilessly defeated us, simply because we are Christians.”
Denouncing Christians for forced conversion, the Hindu mob was confused by the gods and gods on July 20th, Pastor Abhinav Baksh’s worship pastor.
After his arrest on July 20th, the pastor was transferred to Darg prison the same night.
“Christian communities are no longer safe in their homes and in their churches, and are no longer safe in prisons,” Pastor Logan said. “What we are running for protection, security and justice is what we show bias and injustice, and instead defeat us and make us regret trusting them. It’s a dangerous proposition to seek evacuation from the police.”
At Darg Prison, officers forced everyone except Rev. Logan to remove their clothes for inspection.
“I told them I wasn’t feeling well, so I think I escaped,” he said.
After spending the night in the barracks, the next morning the guards questioned the pastor and asked him about his personal details and occupation.
“The pastor identified it as such because he didn’t notice the outcome and treated the questions as a standard operating procedure, but I said I was guarding that I was in the security business. “When I heard that five people were pastors, the guard ordered them to beat them.”
After ordering the pastor to raise their hands, they bumped into their butt sections, their knees, thigh backs, and the back of their knees with long wooden sticks, said the baton, which police use in India, said. He added that they had been hit with all their strength and had some blows.
“The trauma was unbearable for me. I can’t imagine the pain they endured,” he said.
Photos of their injuries reveal visible lacerations and provide harsh evidence of police brutality.
City Christian leaders were able to secure bail in some way along with the pastor’s family, and the six pastors were released on July 21 at about 7pm.
Pastor Baksh was reluctant to comment. During the church service on July 20th, about 35 Hindu extremist mobs were crowded in front of the church gates and began slogané using disparaged terms to them and Christianity.
Social media videos show Hindu mobs screaming slogans such as “B**** to perform conversion with shoes.” “Attacks the traitors of the nation with their shoes.” “The pride of the people is Bajran Dar (Hindu extremist organization).”
Pastor Baksh called Rev. Logan and he immediately contacted Jamur Police Station to ask for help. Rev. Logan arrived at the church around 3pm with 25-30 policemen and discovered that members of Bajran Dal were parked in front of the church building, singing hymns and screaming slogans to the Hindu god Hanuman.
To keep the congregations of about 100 people safe, Pastor Baksh locked up the church gates and flipped the church doors from inside where many women and children were.
Officers reduced the walls of the church, knocked on the door and asked Pastor Baksh to open them, Pastor Logan said. After the door opened, police tried to appease Hindu extremists and told church members too.
Hindu nationalists claimed that forced and deceptive conversions were continuing in the church, and called for action against Christians and their leaders. Christians defended the right to worship, which resulted in sloganne by extremists.
After this continued for a while, the police ordered the entire church congregation to accompany the police station and arranged a bus. However, the bus could only hold 35-40 people, and after it was full, the officers forced others home.
“So about 40 Christians were taken to the police station with the American pastor,” Pastor Logan said.
The video recording shows Hindu extremists screaming in victory, laughing and celebrating as a bus filled with Christians was about to leave the premises of the church for the police station.
The three churches hold separate services on their website on Sundays. The first service will run from 8am to 10am, then Pastor Logan’s services will run from 10am to 1pm and Pastor Baksh’s services will run from 1:30pm to 4pm.
At Jamul Police Station, the officers suddenly argued that five names from among the Christians could be given to them and charged in some small sections of the law.
“I refused to give them five names,” Pastor Logan said. “Instead, I asked them to register a lawsuit against those who attacked our church. I told them we were innocent.”
Despite his claims, the officers argued that he had to book Christians under minor conduct and admitted that there was a lot of pressure on him to do so, Pastor Logan said.
The officers then questioned each Christian and asked them what their name, address and occupation, but eventually they were Pastor Logan, Pastor Baksh, K. He only accused Rev. Thomas Gunta, Komal Kotari, Rev. Om Prakash Saf and Rev. Satyya Kumar.
The detained pastors were then taken to the Deputy Ministries for bail, which had already left, so they were sent to Darg Prison.
Pastor Logan said five other pastors were hurt and terrifying.
Police told Rev. Logan that the first information report (FIR) had been registered against him under the section relating to participation in the July 22 protest. (BNS), July 25, 2023, under FIR 617/25.
Demand for justice
On the afternoon of July 22, about 400 Christians protested in front of the Jamur Police Station, demanding the arrest of Hindu extremists.
Police told Christian to file a memorandum, but officers received it on July 24th. The memorandum accused police of concrete actions against extremists, condemning criminal charges and subsequent assault by pastors in prison.
The FIR against the pastor remains active, but despite allegations of torture, he has not been charged against extremists or prison officials.
“Here in Chhattisgarh, they target all the small churches,” Pastor Logan said. “In Buster, many churches (60-70) have been closed. Even funerals are not allowed. Christians do not allow the deaths to be buried. Christians are not allowed to celebrate birthdays.
Christian support organization Open Door ranks 11th in India on the 2025 global watch list where Christians face the toughest persecution. India came in 31st in 2013, but has steadily fallen in the rankings since Narendra Modi took power as prime minister.
Defenders of religious rights have denounced the increasingly hostile rhetoric of the National Democratic Alliance government led by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, who said that since Modi came to power in May 2014, he has encouraged Hindu extremists in India.
