Missionary Couple Faces Serious Threats after Home Prayer Meeting

Gospel for Asia-supported missionaries Rahul and Deepika Bhambri are facing a time of intense trial stemming from a prayer meeting they had at their home.

The couple, who are both third-year students in a local Bible college, were assigned to work in this village as part of their field internship. Most of the villagers are openly hostile to the Gospel, and Rahul and Deepika have been under harsh physical and spiritual attack since their very first days there.

In September, the missionary couple held a special meeting with three days of fasting and prayer. In the last hours of the event, villager Girija Loswami disrupted the meeting and began shouting at the couple. She accused the missionaries of forcing people-including her own daughter-to convert to Christianity. Girija's daughter, Priya, was at the prayer meeting.

The other villagers heard the commotion and sided with Girija. They gathered at the couple's home, where the prayer meeting was taking place, and began taking away the Bibles. A man named Janki Takra then beat Rahul mercilessly, using a stick as a weapon. Rahul's landlord pulled Janki off and protected Rahul from even more severe injuries.

But Janki, who is a well-known anti-Christian extremist in this area, is not satisfied. He continues to threaten Rahul and Deepika, saying he will cut off their hands and legs and send them out of the village if they do not leave on their own.

A day after the attack the village council met to hear the case. However, the council president, who is a member of a radical anti-Christian political party, told the couple they need to leave the village. When they refused, the council president threatened further action against them, but not until after an upcoming election.