- 04 June, 2025
Bhubaneswar, Odisha, 2 June, 2025: A Catholic nun was harassed and falsely accused of religious conversion by Bajrang Dal activists while traveling by train in Odisha on May 31, 2025. She was accompanied by four girls and her younger brother when they were detained and threatened without evidence. Despite the girls affirming their Catholic faith and consent, the group faced hours of public intimidation. Human rights lawyers intervened, leading to their release after officials confirmed the allegations were baseless. The incident reflects an alarming pattern of communal targeting against Christian women religious in India.
The 29-year-old nun, member of the Holy Family Congregation, was traveling from Berhampur, Odisha, to Jharsuguda on the Rourkela Rajarani Express on 31st May 2025 accompanied by four girls—three of whom are legally adults as per their Aadhaar cards.
The nun was in Odisha on a vacation and had also participated in vocation camps for girls organized in the Berhampur Diocese of the eastern Indian State of Odisha. The group's journey was disrupted when members of the Bajrang Dal began following them after noticing the nun in her religious habit. The activists confronted the group and engaged in a heated religious argument with the nun’s brother.
During the journey, one of the girls began crying due to a severe headache. Bajrang Dal members misrepresented this as evidence of coercion by the nun and falsely alleged that the girl was being taken away forcibly for religious conversion.
At Khordha Road Railway Station—approximately two and a half hours from Berhampur—the group was confronted by a large mob of Bajrang Dal members equipped with cameras and loudspeakers. They accused the nun of forced religious conversion and child trafficking, demanding that she and the girls disembark the train. The mob behaved aggressively and violently, intimidating both onlookers and railway staff into silence.
Around 11:00 PM, the group was forcibly taken to the Railway Protection Force (RPF) post, where Bajrang Dal members made an oral complaint alleging forced conversion and trafficking of minors. During the interrogation that followed, RPF personnel allowed Bajrang Dal members to dominate the conversation. The nun and the girls were repeatedly interrupted and accused of lying, even though the girls consistently affirmed they were Catholics by birth and were traveling voluntarily with the knowledge and consent of their families.
When the nun managed to send a distress message to her congregation's superior during the interrogation, Bajrang Dal members noticed and demanded that her phone be confiscated. In response, a police officer reportedly snatched the phone from her.
After more than an hour of harassment, intimidation, and interrogation by Bajrang Dal members, mostly at the RPF post, they were detained by the RPF.
On the morning of June 1, 2025, the group was taken to the Government Railway Police Force (GRPF) office around 8:00 AM. The nun’s parents and the girls’ parents also arrived there. Outside the GRPF office, they were again surrounded and harassed for over three hours by Bajrang Dal members and media representatives. The mob issued death threats, shouting: “We will burn you and kill you,” and attempted to coerce the girls into falsely claiming they were Hindus. By 11:30 AM, as the situation in front of the GRPF worsened, the GRPF personnel brought the nun inside the office. The girls and their parents were brought in around 1:00 PM.
Human rights lawyers—Adv. Sujata Jena, Adv. Clara D’Souza, and Adv. Sebati Soren arrived at the GRPF office at approximately 2:00 PM after being alerted by the families. They found the nun and the girls emotionally distressed and traumatized. The nun expressed concern for her safety and protection. The lawyers questioned the legal grounds for their detention, especially in the absence of a written complaint or FIR, and demanded immediate release and protection for the victims and action against those responsible for the harassment and threats.
Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Aditya Kumar Sethi acknowledged their concerns, assured full cooperation, and agreed to provide police escort to ensure the victims’ safety and shield them from further intimidation or media sensationalism.
The advocates were present during the official interrogation of the nun and the girls, as well as during the statements made by their parents. After completing necessary formalities, the GRPF released the nun and the girls around 6:00 PM finding them innocent and the complaint against them were baseless.
A woman havildar and a female constable escorted the nun and advocates to Bhubaneswar, where they arrived around 7:30 PM. The nun was sheltered by Adv. Sr. Sujata Jena in the Sacred Hearts Community. The nun’s superiors arrived later that evening and took her back to her community the following day.
Simultaneously, the police escorted the girls and their parents in a police vehicle back to their respective villages in Gajapati district to ensure their safety.
The nun expressed deep regret over the ordeal and remarked that the incident might have been avoided had she not worn her religious habit.
False Allegations Refuted
Several regional news outlets reported that the RPF and GRPF had detained the nun on charges of religious conversion and trafficking. However, these accusations were based solely on an oral complaint by Bajrang Dal activists and were unsupported by any credible evidence.
Following an official investigation, GRPF officials confirmed that the allegations were baseless. The nun and the girls were released without any charges, and full security was provided for their return journey.
Repeated Pattern of Harassment
This marks the third documented instance of Catholic nuns being harassed while traveling in religious attire. In March 2021, nuns from Odisha who were traveling on the Utkal Express were stopped in Jhansi and falsely accused of engaging in religious conversion activities. Again in 2023, a Catholic nun was harassed and mocked by a bus conductor and fellow passengers while traveling in Meghalaya, Northeast India, simply for wearing her religious habit.
In all these incidents, the nuns were targeted, stopped, interrogated, and accused without any evidence, solely because of their visible religious identity.
The Deputy Superintendent of Police at the GRPF reportedly questioned why women religious continue to wear religious habits at a time when violence against Christians, particularly nuns, is increasingly evident. "Why can’t she dress like any other woman and travel freely?" he remarked, implying that wearing a habit invites trouble.
Call for Action
This disturbing pattern of targeting religious minorities, particularly Christian women religious, during travel under false and communal pretenses constitutes a grave violation of fundamental rights guaranteed by the Indian Constitution. These include Article 19, which guarantees freedom of movement; Article 25, which ensures freedom of religion; and Article 21, which upholds the right to life with dignity.
Moreover, such actions violate several provisions of the Indian Penal Code, including Section 499 and 500 IPC (criminal defamation), Section 182 IPC (false information to a public servant), Section 153A IPC (promoting enmity between religious groups), Section 295A IPC (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings), Section 506 IPC (criminal intimidation), Section 341 and 342 IPC (wrongful restraint and confinement), and Section 354 IPC (outraging the modesty and dignity of women).
The intimidation and misinformation spread through media and social platforms also invoke Sections 66A and 69A of the Information Technology Act, addressing the dissemination of false or inflammatory content.
In response, human rights defenders and legal advocates are demanding the immediate registration of a First Information Report (FIR) against the Bajrang Dal members, and emphasize the urgent need to protect the rights, dignity, and futures of the girls whose candidacy program was obstructed—thereby violating their constitutional protections under Articles 21 and 15.
By Catholic Connect Reporter
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