As India embarks on the world’s biggest census this month, counting its estimated population of 1.4 billion people, the nation’s Christians are being forced to make difficult choices that can impact their safety, identity, and belonging.
The first census since 2011 is expected to take around a year to complete with final data not available until the end of next year.
But data on the number of Christians is likely to be skewed.
For the first time since India’s independence in 1947, the census will record caste along with religion.
But many Christians will not tick the Christian box because they fear it could lead to persecution, loss of jobs, loss of contracts and even their arrest.
WHY CHRISTIANS ARE RELUCTANT TO OFFICIALLY CONFIRM THEIR FAITH
The recording of both caste and religion is likely to have major implications for welfare delivery, public policy, and the representation of minority communities.
For Christians from the lowest caste Dalit backgrounds or those living in regions steeped in religious hostility, the act of speaking openly about faith comes with potentially life-ruining consequences.
Believers in the 13 Indian states where anti-conversion laws are being enforced fear that such a disclosure could invite unnecessary trouble from the government, leading to false charges against them.
Police can make arrests without a warrant, and obtaining bail is extremely difficult.
Convictions can result in jail terms ranging from one year to life imprisonment, along with hefty fines.
In the most populous state of Uttar Pradesh, police made 1,682 arrests under anti-conversion laws between November 2020 and July 2024.
CENSUS WILL NOT REFLECT REALITY OF CHRISTIANITY IN INDIA
While anecdotal evidence by church leaders reveals a growth in house churches across India’s urban and rural areas, there is no reliable data to capture that trend.
According to census data, the percentage of Christians has remained largely stable between 1979 (2.6%) and 2011 (2.3%).
“The very fact that the Christian population is less than 3%, even after 79 years of independence, shows that mass conversions are a bogey,” said Joshua Kalapati, associate editor of the Oxford Encyclopaedia of South Asian Christianity.
A 2021 report by the Pew Research Center found that religious conversion in India is “rare” — but that’s only in official data.
Christianity Today reports that: “The narrative of mass conversion continues to shape public discourse, deepening the vulnerability Indian Christians face.”
WHY THE CENSUS COULD BE COSTLY TO LOWEST CASTE PEOPLE
In the case of Dalit Christians, the census raises a far more complex question.
Under Indian law, Scheduled Caste status and the reservation benefits linked to it are restricted to Hindus, Sikhs, and Buddhists.
Dalit converts to Christianity and Islam are excluded, under the assumption that caste does not exist in these religions.
Numerous government-appointed commissions found that in Indian society, caste transcends religion, and Dalit Christians face double the discrimination as Indian society looks down on both identities.
DISCRIMINATION AGAINST DALIT CHRISTIANS
As a result, many of those believers are faced with a difficult choice:
Declare their Christian faith openly and risk forgoing job prospects and entrance to universities, or remain Hindu on paper and practice Christianity in private.
Over the generations, many Christians have chosen the latter option.
“Dalit Christians should be allowed to record both their identities,” said Asir Ebenezer, general secretary of the National Council of Churches in India.
“Denying that choice amounts to discrimination.”
CONFUSION OVER WHO QUALIFIES TO OFFICIALLY BE A CHRISTIAN
At a deeper level, the census also raises a fundamental question of who the government qualifies to be called a Christian.
“Is it someone formally affiliated with a church and holding a baptism certificate? Or someone who quietly attends a house church, believes in Christ, but has no official documentation?” asked A. C. Michael, national coordinator of the United Christian Forum. “It is a gray area.”
For many, safety and security take precedence over the question of identity.
“There is no need for bravado,” said John Dayal, a Christian human rights activist.
WHY RAVI CHOOSES HIS CASTE OVER HIS FAITH
Ravi Kishore, a third-generation Christian from the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh must choose between two identities that dictate his life: his Dalit caste or his Christian faith.
Although his family has practiced Christianity for generations, they prefer being listed as Scheduled Caste (SC) Hindus in government records.
This status has allowed Ravi’s grandfather and father to access education and employment opportunities previously unavailable to the caste due to historic and ongoing discrimination.
By identifying as Christians, they would lose those benefits.
“I know I am not being honest by hiding my Christian identity,” Ravi admitted.
WHY SURAJ WON’T TICK CHRISTIANITY
Suraj Kumar is caught in different dilemma.
He has been a Christian for about a year and a half, worshiping quietly with seven other families at a house church in his village.
He works as an electrician to earn a living.
His Christian identity, he felt, could come in his way of cultivating local networks and securing government contracts, which are necessary for his work and income flow.
“IF PEOPLE KNOW I’M A CHRISTIAN, IT COULD CHANGE MY LIFE FOR THE WORSE”
“In my work, relationships matter. If people know I am a Christian, it could change how they see me,” explained Suraj.
In Uttar Pradesh where hostility towards Christians is at its peak, he is wary of identifying as a Christian in the census.
“Tomorrow, they could charge me in some case just because I am a Christian.”
So when the census data is finally released, the numbers are unlikely to accurately reflect a true picture of modern day India, because it will almost certainly and significantly undercount Christians.
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