Catholic nuns' arrest over ‘false' charges rocks Indian parliament
A screengrab of Sisters Vandana Francis and Preeti Mary, members of Assisi Sisters of Mary Immaculate (ASMI), who were arrested on July 25 by the Government Railway Police at Durg railway station in central India's Chhattisgarh state. (Photo: Youtube)
RAIPUR: The arrest and jailing of two Catholic nuns on false charges of human trafficking and conversion has rocked the Indian parliament, with opposition members seeking their immediate release.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who is the leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha (upper house), on July 28 called the arrests an example of "BJP-RSS mob rule."
He was referring to the pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and its parent body, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (national volunteer corps), by their acronyms.
Sisters Vandana Francis and Preeti Mary, who are members of Assisi Sisters of Mary Immaculate (ASMI), a Franciscan congregation of the Syro- Malabar Church, were arrested on July 25 by the Government Railway Police at Durg railway station in central Chhattisgarh state.
Chhattisgarh is a BJP-ruled state, and its chief minister, Vishnu Deo Sai, defended the action, terming it a serious matter of "human trafficking under the guise of religious conversion."
He asserted that the law would take its own course.
However, Rahul Gandhi alleged "systematic persecution of minorities" and a "dangerous pattern" of targeting individuals for their faith.
"Religious freedom is a constitutional right," he asserted.
Francis and Mary had gone to Durg railway station to pick up three young women, aged between 19 and 22, to be employed as domestic help in three convents in the state.
As the nuns and the girls were showing their tickets to a railway official, a mob arrived and surrounded them, said Father Josh Abraham from Raipur archdiocese, based in the state's capital.
'The members of the mob claimed to belong to Bajrang Dal, a militant Hindu group, and accused the nuns of forcibly taking away the girls for religious conversion,' the priest, who is a lawyer and gathered details of the incident, told UCA News on July 28.
The railway police arrived and took away the nuns, the girls, and a boy who accompanied them for the journey from their homes to Durg.
'The police later took the three girls to a shelter home. The nuns and the boy were charged with human trafficking and religious conversion, and remanded in custody for 14 days by a local court,' Abraham said.
The priest-lawyer said the police had said they would release the nuns and the boy in the evening, but instead jailed them.
The girls are members of the Church of South India (CSI), a union of Protestant denominations. One of them allegedly told the police that she was taken to Durg without her consent.
'This could have been done by pressuring the girl which led to totally false charges being laid against the nuns,' Abraham alleged.
He said the nuns' bail applications were filed on July 28 and hoped they would be released soon, as the 'charges against them are totally false and baseless.'
Both the nuns are natives of Kerala, and their arrest and jailing caused a stir in the southern state.
Parliamentarians belonging to the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) and the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) from Kerala staged a protest in the parliament complex, waving placards that read 'Stop attacks on minorities.'
Federal Minister of State for Minority Affairs George Kurian, who is also from Kerala, refused to take a clear stand, saying 'the matter was subjudiced.'
The BJP's Kerala state president, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, was working closely with the federal and Chhattisgarh governments, as well as the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India (CBCI), to secure the early release of the nuns, he said.
The Kerala Catholic Bishops' Council (KCBC) was among the first to express its profound dismay and outrage at the action, saying it 'was reportedly prompted by false and baseless allegations of religious conversion and human trafficking.'
In a July 27 statement, the KCBC's Vigilance Commission said that the 'distressing incident is part of a broader and deeply troubling pattern of increasing hostility toward Christians and missionary personnel across various Indian states.'
It further expressed concern over the weaponization of anti-conversion laws by extremist groups, which posed a serious threat to the constitutional rights of religious minorities.
'We affirm that Catholic missionaries do not engage in forced conversions. Our service to society — particularly in the fields of education, healthcare, and social welfare — is driven by compassion and a commitment to the common good,' the KCBC said.
It demanded that those responsible for the false accusations and arbitrary arrests of the sisters be held accountable under the law.
'Necessary legal and administrative action be taken to prevent such misuse of power in the future,' the statement said.
The KCBC sought urgent intervention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to end the harassment of Christians on false allegations of religious conversion across India.
It also appealed to the government to adopt firm measures to curb religious fanaticism, prevent mob violence, and ensure that India remains true to its democratic, secular, and inclusive identity.
"This act is a grave violation of human rights and an attack on religious freedom," said a KCBC spokesperson.
Echoing similar sentiments, the CBCI, which is the apex body of Catholic bishops in India, urged both the Federal and state governments to intervene swiftly to ensure the nuns' safety and secure their release.
"Such incidents create an atmosphere of fear and insecurity among the Christian community," it noted
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said his government 'stands in solidarity with the affected individuals and will extend all possible support.' He wrote to Prime Minister Modi, seeking the nuns' immediate release.
K C Venugopal, a senior Congress leader and parliamentarian from Kerala, condemned the arrests as "politically motivated" and "unacceptable."
Venugopal wrote to Federal Home Minister Amit Shah on July 27, demanding action be taken against those who instigated the action against the nuns.
Christians make up 2.3 percent of India's more than 1.4 billion people, about 80 percent of whom are Hindus.--ucanews.com
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