by Saji Thomas
For years, Christmas at Virendra Yadav’s modest home in northern India meant cake, prayer, and a crowded table of relatives and friends celebrating the birth of Jesus.
This year, the house is quiet.
Yadav and his teenage son are spending Christmas in silence and prayer after his wife, Laxmi Yadav, was jailed two months ago under Uttar Pradesh’s anti-conversion law, accused of illegally converting others to Christianity — a charge her family strongly denies.
Laxmi Yadav, 35, is among at least 112 Christians across India who will spend Christmas this year in jail, most of them accused of breaking state anti-conversion laws, according to Christian advocacy groups.
The majority, at least 82, are detained in Uttar Pradesh, India’s most populous state, which has seen a surge in arrests since the law was amended, strengthening it in 2024.
On Dec. 22, Yadav stood outside Uttar Pradesh’s Gorakhpur district jail, waiting for a brief visit with his wife.
“I have come with nothing except prayer and encouragement,” he said. “I want to wish her a Christmas in prison and assure her she is not alone.”
Laxmi Yadav was denied bail by a lower court and has appealed to the Allahabad High Court, with a hearing expected in January.
Her husband insists she is imprisoned solely because of her Christian faith.
“She is innocent,” he said. “We know she will miss Christmas with us, but we believe she will be cleared.”
Christian leaders say the people on their list of Christians languishing in prisons across India share a story similar to the Yadavs.
“These people are in prison not for any crime, but for their faith,” said A.C. Michael, a leader of the United Christian Forum (UCF), a New Delhi-based ecumenical body that documents alleged persecution of Christians.
This story was originally published in ucanews.com. Read the full story here.