Attacks on Christmas in India and the Normalization of Majoritarian Intimidation

Over recent years, India has experienced a steady rise in incidents targeting religious minorities, with Christian communities increasingly facing intimidation during the Christmas season. These developments are no longer confined to isolated local disputes; instead, they reflect a broader ideological transformation tied to the growing influence of Hindu nationalist organizations operating within the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)–Hindutva ecosystem.

Western media outlets have documented these trends with increasing clarity.

The Guardian has reported multiple instances in which Christmas carol groups were attacked, churches were threatened, and Christian worshippers were harassed during December celebrations. The Guardian’s reporting situates these events into a broader pattern of majoritarian mobilization that has coincided with the political ascendancy of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), whose ideological roots are closely linked to the RSS.

The Telegraph (London) published a detailed account under the headline “Hindu extremists try to shut down Christmas in India.” The article documented coordinated efforts to disrupt Christmas celebrations across multiple Indian states, including threats issued to churches, intimidation of worshippers, and physical assaults on carol singers. The Telegraph emphasized that many of these actions were carried out by individuals or groups aligned with Hindutva ideology and noted the limited legal consequences faced by perpetrators.

BBC News and the BBC World Service have reinforced these findings. BBC reporting places Christmas-related attacks within a broader context of declining religious freedom in India, highlighting parallels between the treatment of Christians and earlier patterns of intimidation directed at Muslims and Sikhs. This comparative framing suggests that the issue is structural rather than episodic.

The Associated Press has independently corroborated these incidents. Associated Press reporting describes disruptions of Christmas worship and growing pressure on Christian communities, lending further credibility to claims that these attacks represent a sustained trend rather than isolated anomalies.

The New York Times has situated Christmas-period violence within a broader assessment of democratic backsliding in India. Its coverage links the shrinking civic space for religious minorities to the ideological influence of Hindu nationalism and the normalization of vigilante enforcement of cultural conformity. The Times’ analysis underscores that democratic systems are weakened not only by the erosion of electoral norms but also by the routine marginalization of minority communities.

Taken collectively, this body of Western media reporting points to a consistent conclusion: attacks on Christmas celebrations in India are symptomatic of a deeper ideological project that seeks to redefine national identity along majoritarian religious lines. The RSS, as the principal ideological fountainhead of Hindutva, occupies a central position in this transformation. While not all acts of violence can be directly attributed to formal organizational directives, the ideological environment fostered by RSS-aligned narratives has enabled such actions to proliferate with relative impunity.

For international observers, the significance of these developments extends beyond religious freedom alone. India’s global standing as the world’s largest democracy rests on its constitutional commitment to pluralism, minority rights, and secular governance. When religious intimidation becomes normalized, and when state institutions appear unwilling or unable to hold perpetrators accountable, democratic credibility is inevitably undermined.

The targeting of Christmas celebrations, therefore, serves as a warning indicator. It reflects not merely intolerance toward a single community, but a broader erosion of pluralism that has implications for regional stability, international partnerships, and the values-based foundations of India’s relationships with Western democracies.

Summary of Documented 2025 Christmas Incidents

Political Responsibility Following Prime Minister Modi’s Public Praise of the RSS

Statement of Record

On 15 August 2025 (India’s Independence Day), Narendra Modi, in his capacity as Prime Minister, publicly praised the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), describing it as a foundational force in India’s national life and ideological development.

This statement was delivered from the highest constitutional office and carries political, institutional, and symbolic weight.

Why This Matters

In democratic systems, public endorsement by a head of government establishes responsibility, not merely opinion.

When:

• A leader praises an ideological organization, and
• Actors aligned with that ideology engage in systematic intimidation or violence, and
• The state fails to impose meaningful consequences,

The leader bears political responsibility for outcomes reasonably linked to that endorsement.

This principle is standard in U.S. congressional oversight and in international human rights assessment.

Why This Matters to the United States

• Religious freedom is a core U.S. foreign-policy principle.
• Democratic erosion is incremental, marked by normalized intimidation.
• Silence signals tolerance, emboldening extremist ecosystems.

Christmas-period violence is a reliable early-warning indicator for international human rights monitors.

Historical Context the West Must Remember

The Nazi Party did not begin with mass atrocities. It began with:

• Cultural nationalism
• Street-level intimidation
• Selective law enforcement
• State tolerance and leadership legitimization

Analytical comparison (early-stage): Outside India RSS and its affiliates are busy celebrating Diwali in the White House and other important places but inside the country committing atrocities on religious minorities. The RSS today occupies a structurally similar ideological position—majoritarian nationalism, acceptance of vigilantism, and explicit political endorsement at the highest level. This is early-warning analysis, not rhetorical equivalence.