In Madhya Pradesh’s Damoh district, the local government has been consistently pursuing action against Christian missionaries over issues related to religious conversions. The Madhya Pradesh district has been at the centre of several such cases for a period of time now, and the issue of religious conversion remains a lightning rod in the region.
Recently, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) took significant action against certain Christian “missionaries”. According to reports, the Chairperson of the Commission, Priyank Kanoongo, visited an orphanage affiliated with an organisation called the Foundation Stone Mission in Damoh and uncovered several irregularities.
Over the next few days, the district administration revoked the credentials of this orphanage. Criminal charges have been filed in court, following a report from the child rights body that detailed these irregularities amongst others. The local police station filed the chargesheet after completing a preliminary investigation.
According to government counsel Girish Rathore, the chargesheet alleges various offences, including forced conversions, human trafficking, obstructing the work of public servants, and forcibly detaining children. These charges are filed under various sections, including Section 186, 370, 42, and 75 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, as well as offences under the Madhya Pradesh Freedom of Religion Act, 1968.
After the preliminary police investigation, chargesheets were filed against all the accused in court. Yesterday, during the second hearing session, arguments were scheduled to be presented regarding the allegations made by the prosecution. The defence, represented by Mr Girish Rathore, Public Prosecutor, concurred with the arguments, and based on the arguments presented, the court formally charged all the accused individuals, including Ajay Lal, Jitendra Henry, Sheetal Arnisti, Rajkamal David Lal, Dr Manjula Varnavas, Sheela Lal, Vivek Lal, Vivart Lal, and Sanit Lal, with all the charges. A total of nine accused individuals associated with institutions such as the Foundation Stone Mission and Mid-India Christian Mission Bible College have had chargesheets filed against them, and now the court will proceed with the case.
