Beaten Indian students speak of 'privilege' to suffer for Christ

Gospel for Asia has praised two of its Bible college students for their Christ-like attitude to the savage beatings they endured from a mob of anti-Christian extremists in Haryana state, India, earlier in the month.

On 14 November, students Vijay and Soman were ministering in Haryana during a school break when they went into a shop to witness to the owner.

According to Gospel for Asia, the man acted as though he was interested in what they had to say and told them to wait while he found some friends who would also be interested in their literature. It later came to light that the shop owner was the leader of a local anti-Christian extremist group and, instead, a crowd of extremists gathered outside of the shop.

According to Gospel for Asia, the extremists questioned the two boys about their reasons for wanting to preach a "foreign religion", and accused them of being anti-nationalistic and of forcing people to convert.

Although the students responded by explaining that they were only distributing literature on how to be freed from sin, the extremists began to beat them and dragged them into the street.

The group accused them of trying to convert people by offering large sums of money and the students had their literature burned. According to Gospel for Asia, they were also threatened with death by burning.

The mob grew to 600 people as Vijay and Soman were dragged around the town and beaten for four hours. Eventually the police broke the crowd and took Vijay and Soman into protective custody.

The mob also went to the home of the two students, beating the owner for letting the students stay there. They also burned $600 worth of the student's belongings.

One other student living with the two victims was ministering elsewhere on the day of the incident and was also taken into custody.

All three were released the following day but will be required to return for a trial on the charges brought against them by the mob of performing forced conversions. The two students have received treatment in hospital for their wounds.

A Gospel for Asia correspondent praised the students, "They are amazed that they are alive after having been beaten for four hours. They consider it joy to have the privilege to suffer for Christ."

Gospel for Asia leaders have requested prayer for the ministry in Haryana, the state where persecutions occur most regularly.