In Uttar Pradesh’s Moradabad district, four people, including a Christian pastor from Uttarakhand, were arrested for converting people to Christianity under the guise of providing ‘assistance’. On 14th July, the police informed that the accused persons had been booked under relevant sections of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, and the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2021.
The police action came after Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal activists raised the matter. The FIR was registered against the accused on the complaint of Moradabad VHP general secretary Pankaj Singh.
Speaking about the matter, Rajesh Kumar, Thakurdwara circle officer said that the incident unfolded at Rammanawala village on the night of July 12th, while some people were holding a Christian religious meeting. He said that activists from the two Hindu organizations intervened and contacted the police, complaining of forced religious conversion on the pretext of giving financial and other benefits.
Pankaj Singh Pal, the general secretary of the Moradabad VHP district unit, filed an FIR against four people, including one pastor Kuldeep in Uddhamsinghnagar, Uttarakhand, and three Rammanwala village residents— two brothers Amarjeet and Jaipal, and Mukesh. He stated in the FIR that the trio frequently called pastors from outside and organized religious gatherings. Pal alleged that the accused persons had converted nearly 60 persons from 15 Hindu families to Christianity and were attempting to do the same with other locals.
The VHP office bearer said in the FIR that they provide Hindus money, refrigerators, televisions, bicycles, motorcycles, and sewing machines in exchange for conversion to Christianity. He stated that people involved in getting people converted to Christianity are awarded Rs25,000, while the pastor who converts them receives Rs 35,000 for each non-Christian lured into Christianity.
On Saturday, the Thakurdwara police station registered an FIR under BNS sections 351(2) and 351(3) for insulting and criminal intimidation, as well as sections 3 and 5(1) of the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2021. The Thakurdwara Police Station’s CO stated that the authorities are investigating the matter.
