Popular Evangelist, Benny Hinn Cancels Trip To India Due To Massive Protests from Hindu Groups
Evangelist Benny Hinn has cancelled his trip to Bangalore, India where he was to participate in a prayer conference this week. The cancellation, reportedly due to a "visa problem," comes amid protests among Hindu groups who were concerned about Hinn converting their countrymen to Christianity.
Kamal Panth, the Additional Commissioner of Police (Law and Order), revealed to the press on Tuesday that organizers of the Christian Prayer Conference had informed the authorities that Hinn's visit had been cancelled.
"Earlier organizers had said he will be coming; recently they have sent us a letter with names of pastors attending, which does not mention his name — so they have said he is not coming," Panth was quoted as saying.
Hinn has since scrubbed any reference to the Jan. 15-19 conference from the itinerary on his official website,
which now lists a "special anointing service" in Dubai as his next engagement on Jan. 24.
Hindu groups in the Indian State of Karnataka, of which Bangalore is the capital, had been gathering in protests since last week to demand that lawmakers keep Hinn from attending the Christian Prayer Conference being hosted by the local Bethel Assembly of God Church. The faith-healer was targeted by Hindu activists for allegedly "coming to Karnataka with a hidden agenda of converting Hindus to Christianity," referencing Hinn's 2005 visit to the region that saw a mass turnout.
During his 2005 visit for the "Festival of Blessings, "10,000 law enforcement officials were deployed at the Jakkur airfield where the crusade was held. Meanwhile, locals rioted in the streets, setting buses on fire and prompting businesses to close their doors. Hindus comprise 80.5 percent of India's population of 1.2 billion, with Muslims being about 13.4 percent and Christians 2.3 percent of the population.
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