MUMBAI: A US national and two Indian citizens were arrested by Maharashtra Police for allegedly attempting to convert tribal villagers to Christianity and thereby insulting Hindu religion.
Upon receiving a complaint of wrongful conversion, the Bhiwandi taluka police on late Friday arrested 58-year-old US national James Watson, Sainath Ganpati Sarpe (42) of Palghar, and Manoj Govind Kolha (35) of Chimbipada, Bhiwandi. The US national was in India on a business visa.
All three have been accused of allegedly performing a baptism. They have also been accused of allegedly performing black magic and 'luring' villagers to convert to Christianity.
Thane Deputy Police Commissioner Rahul Zalte confirmed the incident and said that the court has granted the 14-day magistrate's custody, and they are probing the case.
“All three accused have been booked under Sections 299 (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings) and 302 (intentionally hurting religious sentiments) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Foreigners Act (for misusing visa norms), and Maharashtra's 2013 anti-black magic law. The local court first granted the two days of police custody and now 14 days of magistrate custody,” said Zalte.
According to the local police, the accused arranged the prayer meet in Chimbipada village in Bhiwadni taluka in Thane district on Friday. The case was filed based on a complaint by a local resident, Ravinath Bhurkut.
Police said that on Friday, a prayer meet was held outside the house of Manoj Kolha, where 30 to 40 villagers had gathered.
During this meeting, Watson read holy books and claimed that the people will attain moksha through Christianity, not Hinduism. He allegedly urged everyone to get baptised and read the holy book daily, as well as attend the prayer regularly.