Asia

140 group profiles operating in Asia. All scores are BITE-derived from publicly available sources.

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Christian

Providence / Christian Gospel Mission (JMS, Jeong Myeong-seok)

35/40· Extreme

Korean Christian-derived movement founded by Jeong Myeong-seok (1980). Leader convicted of multiple counts of sexual assault in 2009 (10y) and again in 2024 (23y). Subject of Netflix's 'In the Name of God' (2023).

Manmin Central Church (Lee Jae-rock)

33/40· Extreme

Seoul-based Korean Pentecostal sect founded in 1982 by Lee Jae-rock, who claimed to be sinless and capable of healing miracles. The Christian Council of Korea declared Manmin a heretical group in 1999. Lee was convicted in 2018 of raping eight female members and sentenced to 16 years.

Dera Sacha Sauda 2024 continuation

33/40· Extreme

Cross-reference entry — see primary Dera Sacha Sauda entry.

Eastern Lightning / Church of Almighty God (China)

32/40· Extreme

Chinese new religious movement believing the female 'Almighty God' is the second incarnation of Christ. 2014 McDonald's killing in Zhaoyuan by members. Chinese government-banned; refugee status disputed in multiple Western countries.

Shuvu Banim (Eliezer Berland)

32/40· Extreme

Israeli Breslov-derived sect led by Eliezer Berland. Berland convicted in 2022 of multiple sexual assaults of female followers; sentenced 18 months.

Asaram Bapu organisation

32/40· Extreme

Indian guru organisation. Asaram Bapu convicted in 2018 of raping a teenage devotee in 2013; sentenced to life imprisonment. Son Narayan Sai also convicted of rape (2019).

Nithyananda 'Kailasa' micro-state project

31/40· Extreme

Indian guru Swami Nithyananda fled India in 2019 facing rape charges. Subsequently claimed to found 'Kailasa' sovereign Hindu nation (unrecognised). Multiple documented fraudulent engagement claims with US cities.

Rampal (Satlok Ashram, India)

31/40· Extreme

Indian self-styled guru convicted of two murders. Sentenced to life imprisonment in 2017 and 2018 for deaths during the 2014 Satlok Ashram siege.

Sathya Sai Baba ashram residential schools (Puttaparthi)

31/40· Extreme

Free residential schools and university operated by the Sathya Sai Central Trust at the Puttaparthi ashram (Andhra Pradesh, India). Decades of child-sexual-abuse allegations against Sathya Sai Baba (1926–2011) and the unresolved 1993 ashram shootings.

WMSCOG 2024 successor / 'Mother God Zhang' continuation

30/40· High

Cross-reference entry — see primary WMSCOG entry.

Ger (Gur) Hasidic

29/40· High

Polish-origin Hasidic dynasty headquartered in Jerusalem and Bnei Brak. ~11,000 families globally. Distinctive 'Takkanot' rules sharply restricting marital intimacy and a 2019 succession split between the mainstream and Shaul Alter branches.

Aleph (Aum Shinrikyo successor)

29/40· High

Direct successor organisation to Aum Shinrikyo. Renamed Aleph in 2000. Under continuous Japanese Public Security Intelligence Agency surveillance. Continues to retain ≈1,500 members despite legal restrictions.

New Religious Movement

Japanese Unification Church successor branches (post-2022 Abe)

29/40· High

Japanese branches of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, post-2022 Abe assassination. Subject of Japanese government dissolution petition filed 2023.

Bobov Hasidic

28/40· High

Polish-origin Hasidic dynasty headquartered in Boro Park, Brooklyn. One of the largest Hasidic communities in North America (~10,000+ families). Long-running Bobov-45 / Bobov-48 succession schism since 2005.

Belz Hasidic

28/40· High

Galician-origin Hasidic dynasty centred in Jerusalem (Kiryat Belz). ~7,000 families globally. Substantial Israeli political influence through Agudat Israel and the Council of Torah Sages.

Vizhnitz Hasidic

28/40· High

Bukovinian-origin Hasidic dynasty (Vyzhnytsia, now western Ukraine) with multiple modern successor courts (Vizhnitz–Bnei Brak, Vizhnitz–Monsey, Vizhnitz–Israel-second-court). Several thousand families globally.

Hizb ut-Tahrir

27/40· High

Transnational political-Islamist organisation founded by Taqiuddin al-Nabhani (1953) seeking the establishment of a global Islamic caliphate. Banned in numerous countries including UK (2024), Germany, Russia, and many Muslim-majority states.

Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP)

26/40· High

Pakistani Barelvi political-religious party founded by Khadim Hussain Rizvi (2015). Notorious for violent street mobilisation around blasphemy law issues. Briefly banned under Pakistan's Anti-Terrorism Act in 2021.

Neturei Karta (anti-Zionist Haredi)

26/40· High

Small insular anti-Zionist Haredi group (founded 1938) opposing the State of Israel as illegitimate before messianic redemption. Controversial alliances with Iran and other anti-Israel governments.

Jewish Defense League (Meir Kahane lineage)

26/40· High

Religious-Zionist political-religious group founded by Rabbi Meir Kahane (1968). Designated by FBI as 'right-wing terrorist group' in 2001. Successor Kach and Kahane Chai banned in Israel.

Political / Ideological

Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)

25/40· High

Indian Hindu nationalist paramilitary-style organisation founded by K.B. Hedgewar (1925). Largest volunteer organisation in the world. Documented links to political violence including the 1948 Gandhi assassination.

New Religious Movement

Honmichi (Tenrikyo offshoot, Onishi Aijirō)

25/40· High

Tenrikyo schism organised by Onishi Aijirō in 1925 (and twice suppressed for lèse-majesté in 1928 and 1938) on the basis of the living-Kanrodai revelation. ~300,000 adherents at peak; today substantially smaller.

Political / Ideological

OneCoin (Ruja Ignatova)

25/40· High

Bulgarian-Indian-marketed cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme founded by Ruja Ignatova (2014). Estimated $4+ billion fraud. Ignatova disappeared in 2017; FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitive list since 2022. Multiple co-conspirator convictions.

Hikari no Wa (Aum Shinrikyo successor splinter)

25/40· High

Aum Shinrikyo splinter founded by Fumihiro Joyu (2007), explicitly distancing from Asahara worship. Approximately 200 members. Continues under reduced PSIA surveillance.

Tablighi Jamaat (Saadi / Nizamuddin faction)

24/40· High

Tablighi Jamaat splinter faction following the Saadi / Nizamuddin lineage. Heightened tensions with the parent Tablighi tradition; documented severance of dissenters in some chapters.

Siddha Yoga (Muktananda / Chidvilasananda)

24/40· High

Indian guru lineage of Swami Muktananda (d. 1982). Substantial 1980s exposé in The CoEvolution Quarterly documented sexual abuse. Successor Gurumayi Chidvilasananda continues SYDA Foundation.

New Religious Movement

Honbushin (Tenrikyo offshoot, Onishi Aijiro)

24/40· High

Tenrikyo schism founded in 1913 by Onishi Aijiro, who proclaimed himself the living Kanrodai (axis of the world). Famous for the construction of the kilometre-scale Honbushin shrine complex at Tondabayashi.

Burmese 969 / Ma Ba Tha movement (U Wirathu)

24/40· High

Burmese Buddhist nationalist movement associated with U Wirathu and Ashin Wirathu. Documented anti-Rohingya rhetoric linked to 2017+ UN-recognised genocide.