Police in Maharashtra's Amravati district have taken eight individuals into custody, including a pastor originally from Kerala, on allegations of attempting to convert people by offering monetary inducements, leading to charges of hurting religious sentiments.
Details of the Arrest and Allegations
The case originated from a complaint filed on Tuesday by Lakshman Shede, a resident of Warud, a town approximately 80 kilometers from Amravati. According to the official complaint, a group of five to six people visited the home of a local resident, Ritesh Bondre, on December 30. The group reportedly set up a pandal in front of his house.
An individual dressed in white clothes was allegedly preaching about Christianity to villagers and enticing attendees with money to change their religious faith. Following the complaint, the in-charge of the Benoda police station visited the location and took the eight accused persons to the police station for questioning.
Identities of the Accused and Legal Action
The police have identified the eight arrested individuals as:
- Ritesh Bondre (the local resident)
- Anandkumar Karri (from Nagpur)
- Sudhir William (a native of Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, residing in Nagpur for years, identified as a pastor)
- Vikram Sande (from Nagpur)
- Four women (names not detailed in the report)
On Wednesday, the police formally arrested the eight accused. They were subsequently presented before a local court, which granted them bail. The charges filed against them are under sections of the new Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS):
- BNS Section 299: Deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings.
- BNS Section 302: Uttering words with deliberate intent to wound the religious feelings of any person.
Political Reaction and Accusations of Polarisation
The arrest has drawn a sharp reaction from Kerala's political leadership. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan took to social media platform X to term the incident as "deeply disturbing."
In his post, Vijayan criticized the Sangh Parivar, alleging a "worrying pattern of targeting minorities to fuel polarisation," and compared the incident to earlier cases in Jabalpur. He asserted that such actions undermine constitutional freedoms. The Chief Minister specifically referred to the arrest of the "Malayali Christian priest, his family and aides" in Nagpur on allegations of forced conversion.
The case highlights the ongoing and sensitive issue of religious conversion laws and allegations in various parts of India, often leading to legal action and political controversy.
