On Sunday, October 1, the Uttar Pradesh Police arrested one of the persons who attempted to convert the religion of Hindus to Christianity in the Sathiaon block of Azamgarh district of Uttar Pradesh. The missionary had organised a ‘prayer meeting’ at the residence of one of the villagers named Chhotelal Ram. The accused offered money to the innocent Hindu attendees and tried to convert them to Christianity under the pretext of a ‘prayer meeting’.
According to the Bhaskar report, the incident came to light after the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal members came to know about the event and caught the accused red-handed. The Hindu organisation members reached the spot of the prayer meeting to find that around 30-35 Hindu women had gathered at Chhotelal Ram’s residence on Sunday. The women were given copies of the Bible and Rs 300 each.
#देवगाँव:किशोरी के साथ दुष्कर्म करने का आरोपी गिरफ्तार#कोतवाली:02 चोरी की मोटर साइकिल तथा अवैध असलहा व कारतूस के साथ 02 अभियुक्त गिरफ्तार#मुबारकपुर: धर्मांतरण करने का आरोपी गिरफ्तार।#कोतवाली: किशोरी के साथ दुष्कर्म करने का आरोपी बाल अपचारी पुलिस अभिरक्षा में। #UPPolice pic.twitter.com/a0tuDkaSeT
— AZAMGARH POLICE (@azamgarhpolice) October 1, 2023
The Bajrang Dal members also heard the accused using abusive and derogatory language for Hindu Gods and Goddesses. After this, the Hindu organisation’s members called the police and got the accused arrested.
Bajrang Dal member Gaurav Raghuvanshi commented on the issue and said that cases of conversion in the state of Uttar Pradesh are rising. “These missionaries go to small villages, trap innocent Hindus, and lure them to convert their religion. In this case, also, the accused had put Rs 300 in each Bible and such books were being offered to the villagers. Derogatory language was being used for Hindu Gods and Goddesses,” he said while talking to Dainik Bhaskar.
A similar incident was reported in Azamgarh last year. On August 1, 2022, the Azamgarh police in Uttar Pradesh busted a conversion racket by arresting six women who were attempting to convert vulnerable villagers to Christianity. According to reports, the racket was being carried out under the guise of a birthday party.
In November 2022, nine persons were arrested by state police for trying to illegally convert Hindus to Christianity under the grab of exorcism. The incident had come to the fore due to Bajrang Dal. The police raided the place of the accused to discover religious books and money. 12 people were initially detained, however, only 9 were arrested.
In the current case, the accused has been arrested and further investigations into the case are underway.
