NEW DELHI, January 2, 2025: The Roman Catholic community’s 106 years old, ‘All India Catholic Union’ (AICU) has welcomed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to a local church on Christmas day and India’s Vice President, Mr CP Radhakrishnan, as a guest at a Christmas celebration by the Catholic Bishops Conference of India, in a media statement today. It also said,, “The violence and hate experienced by Christians in India throughout 2025, especially during the Christmas season, represent not only attacks on individuals but also on the pluralistic fabric of Indian society.”
The issue has attracted the media in many countries, with video clips going viral on X. The Christian population in India, says the Pew Research Center, is 2.4 per cent. South India is home to about half of the Christians in the country, and Christians make up a relatively large share of people in India’s more sparsely populated Northeast, where the vast majority of Christians belong to tribal communities.
The AICU statement says hate speech and xenophobia against Christians by motivated leaders and groups needs to be addressed and it is clear there is an urgency of change. India must uphold its secular foundations, it said.
In its New Year Charter, the AICU has called upon to educate citizens on rights under Articles 25-28 of the Indian constitution, steps to prevent manipulation of electoral rolls effecting minorities, ensuring census does not deepen divisions, restoration of FCNR licences for genuine NGOs, and stopping interference in Christian schools.
