Pastor held in U.P. for allegedly luring people to convert

The police have registered a case under the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2021, which requires the accused to prove that the conversion did not take place forcibly

A pastor was arrested from Rampur district for allegedly luring some people belonging to a Scheduled Caste (SC) community to convert to Christianity from Hinduism. The incident came to light after a villager of Sohna village under the Patwai Police Station limits complained that a pastor named Paulus Masih was allegedly luring some people belonging to an SC community to convert to Christianity on the occasion of Christmas in the village, after which the local police registered a case and arrested the pastor named Paulus Masih on Monday.

The police registered a case under Sections 5(1) and Section 3 of the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2021. When the Act was passed in 2021, Hindu right-wing leaders had argued that it intends to check attempts to convert Hindu women to Islam in the guise of marriage, and what they alleged was “love jihad” and other forceful conversion.

The Act says that no person shall convert, either directly or indirectly, from one religion to another by use or practice of misrepresentation, force, undue influence, coercion, allurement or by any fraudulent means or by marriage nor shall any person abet, convince or conspire such conversion. According to the Act, the accused has to prove that the conversion did not take place forcibly.