On Saturday, the Special Court in the Chhattisgarh’s Bilaspur district awarded the conditional bail to three individuals – including two Catholic nuns from Kerala – who were arrested for charging people and forced religious transformations. The arrest was caused by a political stir and convicted of all over Kerarals.
The main judge of the districts and the session of Sirajuddin Qureshi, the chairman of the National Investigation Agency (NIA), issued an order for bail after reimbursing the decision on Friday after a day.
Three accused – sister of Prethy Mary and sister Vandana Francis of Kerala, along with Sukman Mandavi – were arrested on July 25 at the railway station Durg. The arrest followed the complaints filed by the local official Bajranga Dal, who claimed that women were trying to violate three girls from Narayanpur and run them.
“The court awarded all three departments,” said the advocate Amrito Das, confirmed the decision. He further noted that the prosecution did not request care for further questioning and that alleged victims had already been sent back to their homes.
Defense claims that in court a lack of evidence
On Friday’s Das bail, there was no essential evidence to indicate that the accused had involved in any act of forced conversion or business trading. After hearing the arguments from both sides, the court reserved its decision until Saturday.
The case was filed according to the serious parts of the Indian Criminal Code, including those related to human trading and unlawful religious transformations.
LDF slams arrests as an attack on civil liberty
In Kerala, the arrest met with extensive convictions, especially from the governance of the Democratic Front (LDF), which announced the national protest assembly on 3 and 4 August in all 140 constituencies.
In an interview with the media, the State Secretary of CPI (M) MV Govindan said:
“The party does not see this as an isolated problem of only a few individuals. At stake, the fundamental rights are enshrined in our constitution, including freedom of religion, freedom of movement and other civil freedoms, which are now openly questioned.”
At the point of arrest, he condemned the obvious participation of the police:
“The shocking visual effects of Bajrang and other members of Sangh Parivar faced by nuns, while the police quietly saw the whole world. To reveal such dangerous and unconstitutional actions and prevent the rights of the Indian people, LDF will organize a protest assembly across all 140 voters in Kerala.”
Political and religious tension escalate
The arrest of the nuns further supported tensions about religious freedom and minority rights in India. Religious and human rights organizations criticized what they consider to be a pattern of harassment and focus on minority communities according to laws against conversion.
With a case that is now under judicial control and protests that is close to Kerala, this problem will remain in the ongoing national debate on religious freedom and constitutional rights.
(Tagstotranslate) kerala nuns
