Pakur brothers held for sibling conversion bid

Dumka: Two brothers were arrested for allegedly trying to convert their younger sibling to Christianity against his wishes at Ghagharjani village under Hiranpur police station in Pakur district late on Monday. Three more accused, including the wives of the two, are on the run.

Pakur SP Rajiv Ranjan Singh said Chhabilal Hansda filed an FIR against his brothers Lakhiram Hansda and Babuji Hansda, their wives Hiramuni Murmu and Marsela Soren and his maternal aunt Lukhimuni Tudu on Monday.

In the complaint, Chhabilal said the five were pressurising him to adopt Christianity. Ranjan said, “The brothers were arrested from their home on Monday night and we are looking for the other three named in the complaint. The FIR was under Jharkhand Religious Freedom Bill Act, 2017.”

Chhabilal is a follower of the Sarna religion code while his brothers and their families had adopted Christianity a few years back. “Initially, I was offered money by my brothers and their wives to convert. After I refused, they started threatening me,” he said in the FIR.

The BJP-led government in Jharkhand had passed the anti-conversion Act in August 2017. The law has provisions for imprisonment of three years and fine of Rs 50,000 or both, and four-year jail and Rs 1 lakh fine, or both, if the person converted is a minor, woman or a member of Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe. It also says that a person converting willingly will have to inform the deputy commissioner about details such as time, place and the person who administers the conversion proceedings.