Distributing Bible Not Considered “Allurement for Religious Conversion” Under UP Law, Rules Allahabad High Court
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In a significant ruling, the Allahabad High Court has stated that distributing the Holy Bible and imparting good teachings cannot be construed as an
“allurement for religious conversion”
under the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act. This decision was made public on Wednesday by the high court’s Lucknow bench.
The court’s pronouncement came in the context of a case where two individuals, Jose Papachen and Sheeja, were accused of allegedly enticing individuals from the Scheduled Caste and the Scheduled Tribe communities to convert to Christianity. The duo was incarcerated following an FIR lodged based on a complaint by a BJP functionary from the Ambedkar Nagar district on January 24. The BJP leader’s contention was that the two were actively luring members of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe communities towards Christianity.
Justice Shamim Ahmad, who presided over the case, made a noteworthy observation. He stated,
“Providing teaching, distributing the Holy Bible, encouraging children to get an education, organizing assembly of villagers and performing bhandara, instructing the villagers not to enter into an altercation and not to take liquor does not amount to allurement under the 2021 act.”
Furthermore, the bench emphasized that the act stipulates that only an aggrieved person or a member of their family has the authority to lodge FIRs concerning such matters.
The defense counsel for the appellants argued that the allegations against them, which pertained to allurement and undue influence for mass conversion, were baseless. The appellants asserted that their activities were solely centered around offering free medical treatment to patients in a hospital, which, they believe, cannot be interpreted as a temptation for mass conversion. They further clarified that they were not engaged in any form of religious conversion, be it direct or through misrepresentation, force, undue influence, coercion, allurement, or fraud.
The counsel highlighted that the accused-appellants were merely imparting good teachings, distributing copies of the Bible, promoting education among children, organizing village assemblies, and performing “Bhandara” among other benevolent activities. These actions, they contended, cannot be labeled as allurement.
In their defense, the appellants also cited statements from villagers, documented under Section 161 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC). According to these statements, villagers acknowledged that the appellants provided them with valuable teachings, distributed Bibles, and encouraged them to educate their children.
A significant point raised during the proceedings was that the complainant was neither an aggrieved individual nor related by blood, marriage, or adoption to any aggrieved person, as outlined in Section 4 of the Act. The defense argued that the complainant, being the Zila Mantri of a ruling party, lodged the FIR with the intent of gaining political favor, even though he was not qualified to do so under the Act.
In light of the presented arguments and evidence, the Allahabad High Court granted bail to the accused, Jose Papachen and Sheeja.
