In April 2022, Pastor Ashish, and Sanjay (names changed) were praying at home when the police barged into their house. They tore up their Bibles, confiscated their cell phones, identity cards, and the little money they had. They took them to the station where they were beaten and tortured.

After three days at the police station, the authorities pressured the pastors to give fingerprints on documentation stating they had forcefully converted people. The two men were booked and imprisoned under the Freedom of Religion Act. Once in jail, they suffered terrible emotional and physical abuse at the hands of not only the prison guards but the other prisoners too.

"Our inmates taunted us saying that we would be shot dead, and no one would hear about it because nobody cared about Christians," remembers Sanjay. Thankfully, after five months in prison, these men were released.

After an emotional reunion with his family, Ashish recalled how his mother's first question to him was, "Beta (my son), I hope you have not renounced your faith and forgotten your God?" To which Ashish resolutely responded, "Never! Nothing can stop me from worshiping my God!