Two Christian men in Uttar Pradesh have been cleared of attempting to convert Hindus in violation of the state anti-conversion law. The ruling is seen as a significant legal victory for the Christian minority. The law has been used to bring false accusations of forceful or deceitful conversion against Christians.
The Uttar Pradesh parliament passed an anti-conversion law in 2021. uplegisassembly.gov.in
The recent landmark decision to clear two Christian men accused of converting Hindus came from a court in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, where persecution of Christians is notably intense. The court dismissed the police complaint against the two men as “baseless, unfounded and fabricated,” and ordered proceedings against four police officers.
Thirteen of the 28 states in India have implemented “anti-conversion” laws, significantly limiting the ability of individuals to change their faith or share their religion with others. These laws strictly prohibit using “force” or “fraud” to convert someone to a different religion. Further, they forbid the use of “threats” of “divine displeasure.” This effectively means Christians are unable to discuss concepts like Heaven or Hell, as these could be perceived as providing an incentive to convert.
Uttar Pradesh enacted its anti-conversion law in 2021, and on July 30, 2024, amended the law to make it even more stringent. The amended law provides for a maximum sentence of life imprisonment in the case of forced religious conversion, according to the Press Trust of India news agency.
In some states, including Uttar Pradesh, a person must seek permission from local authorities to convert to another religion.
In India in 2023, police arrested over 600 Christians on false charges of forcibly converting Hindus to Christianity. Most were later released on bail secured by CSI’s local partner. However, due to religious sensitivities in the country, no court addressed the baselessness of the charges. This is despite the fact that many of the cases were initiated by individuals or groups with no direct involvement in the alleged conversions. Notably, in almost none of the cases were there any actual “victims.”
It therefore came as a surprise when the sessions court in Bareilly city on July 30, 2024, instructed the senior superintendent of police to take legal action against the police officers who wrongfully implicated two men, Abhishek Gupta and Kundan Lal Kori, in unlawful conversion, CSI’s local partner said. Gupta and Kori are legally identified as Hindus but are Christian believers by faith.
In the complaint filed in Bithri Chainpur police station on May 29, 2022, a Hindu nationalist activist, identified as Himanshu Patel, claimed that Gupta and Kori, along with six others, were offering local Hindus money if they would convert to Christianity.
According to the complaint, when the complainant and police arrived to investigate, they found Gupta holding a Bible, standing before 40 Hindus gathered in his home. The police promptly arrested the accused and others present at the scene.
Gupta, who had been employed as a CT scan technician at Rohilkhand Medical College since 2007, lost his job and was evicted from his hospital residence following his wrongful arrest, according to CSI’s partner. His nine-year-old daughter was so traumatized that she lost her ability to speak.
Our local partner managed to secure bail for the two accused, and they were released pending trial.
In court, the defendants’ lawyers successfully argued that the police investigation was biased and that no religious conversions had occurred through force or fraudulent means.
In the judgment, Additional Sessions Judge Gyanendra Tripathi stated that the police fabricated evidence and conducted a biased investigation. The police officer in charge admitted in court that the investigation was poorly executed, with key details either overlooked or intentionally omitted.
The court also noted that Gupta was arrested on May 29, 2022, a day before the police complaint was officially registered. But the police case diary stated he was arrested on October 7, 2022—a discrepancy that Judge Tripathi found “completely suspicious.”
The court’s order stated that the police complaint against the accused was registered under political pressure and that the police failed to verify the facts before taking action. It noted that the police acted on the basis of a complaint lacking substantial evidence and proceeded to arrest the accused on questionable grounds.
Judge Tripathi encouraged the acquitted Christians to seek damages for the “malicious prosecution” they endured.
Further, the judge acknowledged that the complainant had no standing in the case, being neither a victim nor a relative of any person who was allegedly converted to Christianity. During cross-examination, Patel admitted to not being forced to convert nor witnessing such attempts on others.
The court noted that the police failed to produce any individuals who had allegedly been unlawfully converted.
Christians, who constitute about 2.3 percent of India’s population of 1.4 billion, have experienced a significant increase in attacks since 2014, coinciding with the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party’s rise to power. Hindus make up more than 80 percent of the population.
Given the politically and religiously charged atmosphere in the country over the past decade this unprecedented judgment provides encouragement to Christians, said CSI’s partner.
