GHAZIABAD: A pastor and his wife were arrested after a Bajrang Dal functionary lodged a police complaint, accusing them of converting people to Christianity.
Santosh John (55), who is originally from Kerala, and his wife Jiji (50) live in the Kanawani area of Indirapuram. A police team took them into custody from their rented house on Monday.
Neighbours, however, expressed surprise at the arrests. They agreed that Santosh and his wife would organise sermons but said they had never heard about conversions.
But Nagar alleged the couple had approached him. “They asked me and my friend to offer prayers to Jesus Christ and said it would end all our problems. They also said that if we adopted Christianity, they would give us Rs 2 lakh each and a 25 sqm plot to build a house. They even promised to take care of the health and education of our children. This is how they have been luring poor and helpless people,” he said in his complaint.Santosh and Jiji were booked under sections 3 and 5(1) of the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2021. If found guilty, they can be sent to jail for anywhere between one and five years.
This story was originally published in timesofindia.indiatimes.com . Read the full story here