Meet the viral ‘papa’ pastors taking Jesus to Bathinda and Birmingham

On the screen is a cherubic looking young boy, held in his father’s arms. A voice in the background announces that the boy, Fateh, was diagnosed with blood cancer a few months earlier. But after receiving the ‘lay-hand’ prayer where the pastor places his hand on the devotee, not only was Fateh “cured” but so were all the children who were in the cancer ward of the hospital at that time. This ‘miracle testimony’ video is posted by self-proclaimed pastor — Raman Hans — whose ‘ministries’ is headquartered in Punjab’s Chamkaur Sahib, about 50 km from Chandigarh. As Fateh's family hails the pastor, a catchy song — ‘Yeshu ji tera palla chookkar, main changi ho jawagee (Jesus, I will get better by the touch of your hand)’ — is played and the crowd goes into a frenzy, shouting ‘hallelujahs’ and dancing in abandon. With over 7 lakh subscribers across YouTube, Instagram and Facebook, Raman Hans symbolises the growing popularity of homegrown pastors inspired by the Pentecostal church. Pentecostal is a movement within Protestant Christianity that believes in direct personal experiences, but pastors in Punjab have taken this to a new level.Thousands throng to the churches for miraculous cures, exorcisms, financial problems, drug addictions and even visa issues. Though ‘papas’ — as the pastors are fondly called by believers — have been a familiar sight in Punjab villages for some years, some like Hans, Ankur Narula, Bajinder Singh, Harpreet Deol have leveraged social media to spread their influence to other states like Delhi, West Bengal, Jharkhand and Gujarat, as well as globally. The Ankur Narula ministry, for instance, has a Canada branch and multiples ones in the UK.Pastor Bajinder Singh, who was recently accused of sexual harassment by one of his followers, is among the ‘stars’ in this pantheon. He started the ‘Church of Glory and Wisdom’ in 2012 which has grown into one of the three largest private 1`churches inJalandhar. And now, Singh’s sights are set nationally. In a meeting held in Jharkhand’s Gumla in January this year, drones captured the crowds thronging to hear him. Videos of the meeting show lines of ‘masih jan’ or followers who claim to have snagged a govt job or been cured of drug addiction, infertility, and even received ‘miracle money’ in their bank accounts to the tune of Rs 8 lakh in one case. Clean-shaven, dressed in executive-like blue coat, jeans and white shirt, Singh has recently been seen addressing audiences from Nepal since the FIR against him was lodged. But allegations and the police case have done little to dampen the enthusiasm of his followers who tune in to his sermons from various parts of the country and overseas. Singh has over 58 lakh subscribers across social media platforms. medium119047621While headquartered in Punjab, Singh’s website claims that the church has branches in Haryana, UP, Odisha, Maharashtra, Karnataka and international ones in US, UK, Canada and even Israel.Similarly, Pastor Ankur Narula, who comes from a Hindu-Arora family and whose ministry claims to be the biggest and fastest growing church ministry in Punjab, uses his sermons to share his life journey from a drug addict to a man of God. In a trademark white kurta and pyjama, Narula’s social media is populated with ‘miracles’ and his recent appearance in West Bengal’s Bardhaman drew big crowds. The prayer meeting boasted of simultaneous translation to Bengali and songs were performed by a large orchestra and backup singers. Punjab has a tradition of ‘deras’ led by a spiritual leader, which has been a big draw for the Dalit community that constitutes over 31% of the population. But an increasing number are now drawn to Christianity. While the 2011 Census pegged them at about 1.26% of the population, most estimates say the number doesn’t reflect reality. Many followers, both from the Dalit and other communities, keep multiple affiliations, that is following these ‘faith-healers’ without formally converting to Christianity, as that would mean losing their status and reservation benefits. The preachers themselves have converted to Christianity but have not changed their Hindu or Sikh names. Some sport a turban, and all of them use Punjabi as their language of instruction adopting traditions like ‘langar’ and ‘sewa’ from mainstream Sikhism. ShowQuotesExplaining the attraction towards these preachers, JNU professor of sociology SS Jodhka says people are lured by the promise of ‘miracles’. “It possibly gives them some relief from their insecurities and anxieties,” he says. Political science professor Ronki Ram attributes it to the fact that in the last few decades, the state has withdrawn from its responsibilities like providing quality education and healthcare. “Gullible people are being fooled by charlatans who offer cures. In their struggle and desperation, they accept whatever is being offered. If they cannot find medical facilities at the primary healthcare centre or hospital, and someone offers a cure, why should they not try that? There is so much despondency, anything or anyone giving hope becomes God-like,” he adds. Gurpreet, from a village near Phagwara, was a drug addict in a dire situation. “I started from beedi, then beer, soon switched to psychotropic drugs and then finally got hooked to chitta (heroin). My mother would get me admitted to drug-de-addiction centres but I would relapse.” Then, some village residents advised him to go to a neighbouring church where the pastor prayed for him and asked him to keep away from his friends. “I suffered withdrawal symptoms but remained immersed in Bible reading. When a few days later I vomited badly, I realised that I was clear of the ‘evil spirit’ and then started feeling better,” he adds. Now known as Pastor Gurpreet, he runs a small church. Gurpreet is a Hindu from the Ad-dharmi/Ravidasia caste, a major SC community in Punjab and several from his community in the village have already been baptised. The growth in influence and stature prompted some prominent preachers to come together on a common platform called the Pentecostal Christian Parbandhak Committee, patterned after the SGPC. In 2023, a section of the Punjabi Christian community launched its own political outfit — United Punjab Party. These developments have not gone unnoticed and attracted criticism from Sikh leaders as well as the Christian church. But much like the police case against Singh or tax troubles in Narula’s case, these appear to be mere hiccups in their path to success.