GPJ India

3 weeks ago | newslaundry.com | Angana Chakrabarti |GPJ India

Christians say the dormant law, first passed in the 1970s, targets their faith. Those trying to revive it say it is essential for preservation of indigenous faiths and culture. A youth member of a church in Doimukh, a town in Arunachal Pradesh, speaks during a session about the state’s APFRA|Angana Chakrabarti, GPJ IndiaThis story was originally published by Global Press Journal. The mood inside Nirjuli Town Baptist Church one evening in late March was somber.

3 weeks ago | globalpressjournal.com | Angana Chakrabarti |GPJ India

NIRJULI, INDIA — The mood inside Nirjuli Town Baptist Church one evening in late March was somber. Around 170 people, mostly young congregants from local churches, had gathered to rally against the revival of a long-dormant law that could suppress the growth of the Christian community in the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh.

1 month ago | globalpressjournal.com | Angana Chakrabarti |GPJ India

CHAMARIA, INDIA — It was village council election season in India’s northeastern state of Assam, and nearly 60,000 people vied for over 21,000 seats. In a country where political ideology often hinges on religion, voters in at least one Anchalik Panchayat (block-level) race, in Kamrup District, showed that when they cast ballots, there’s a lot more at stake. Assam’s population is roughly 34% Muslim, though by some counts it’s as much as 40%, and growing fast.