(MENAFN- Live Mint) A US national and two other people were arrested in Maharashtra's Thane district for allegedly running an illegal religious 'conversion' bid in Bhiwandi.

According to Bhiwandi police, the trio were attempting to convert villagers of the Chimbipada area into Christianity, and had claimed that the conversion would cure them of their ailments.

They were arrested based on a complaint lodged by a villager who claimed that the trio had held a gathering outside one of the accused's house on Friday afternoon, an official said.

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According to the first information report (FIR), books on Christianity were allegedly distributed to men, women, and children gathered at the spot and prayers were recited.

The accused also allegedly told villagers that conversion would cure them of their ailments , the official said.

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Bhiwandi police officer said that the three accused have been identified as:

• James Watson (58), a US national
• Sainath Ganpati Sarpe (42), a resident of Vasai
• Manoj Kolha (35), outside whose house the meeting was held.

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The trio have been booked under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including sections 299 (deliberate and malicious intention of outraging the religious feelings of any class of citizens of India), 302 (uttering words etc, with a deliberate intent to wound religious feelings of any person), and more.

The Foreigners Act and the Maharashtra Prevention and Eradication of Human Sacrifice and Other Inhuman, Evil and Aghori Practices and Black Magic Act, 2013, were also imposed on the three accused.

The local police are investigating the incident further, the official said.

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Earlier in July, Chhangur Baba alias Jalaluddin was remanded to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) custody by a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Lucknow.

He was arrested in a case related to a money laundering investigation against Chhangur and his associates, linked to an alleged illegal conversion racket in Uttar Pradesh.

(With PTI inputs)

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