UP Police Arrest Pastor, Son After Bajrang Dal Protest Outside Fatehpur Church

Fatehpur, Dec 30, 2025: A 60-year-old pastor and his son were taken into custody in Uttar Pradesh’s Fatehpur district on Sunday after members of the right-wing group Bajrang Dal staged a protest outside a church, alleging forced religious conversion, according to PTI.

The arrests followed a demonstration that unfolded while a prayer meeting was underway at the church. Bajrang Dal workers gathered outside for nearly three hours, accusing the pastor, David Gladion, and his 30-year-old son, Abhishek Gladion, of luring Hindu women to convert by offering money, employment opportunities, and free education for their children. Protesters also claimed that around 150 people, many of them women, were present inside the church at the time.

Tensions escalated when the protesters briefly surrounded the police vehicle transporting the pastor and his son. After receiving information about the protest, Circle Officer Veer Singh arrived at the scene with a large police contingent, following which the two were detained.

Radha Nagar Station House Officer Vinod Kumar Maurya said a case has been registered under the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Religious Conversion Act against the pastor, his son, and seven unidentified persons. The case is based on a complaint filed by a local resident, Dev Prakash Paswan.

A police officer told PTI that publicity vehicles were allegedly being used to invite villagers to prayer meetings. One such vehicle was seized during the protest, and religious literature was recovered from it.

CO Veer Singh said the “purpose” of the women’s presence at the church was being verified, adding that an investigation was ongoing and further action would depend on the evidence collected.

The arrests came days after the United Christians Forum wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, expressing concern over what it described as a “disturbing pattern of religious persecution” against Christians in India.

In its letter dated December 26—issued a day after multiple attacks were reported on Christmas celebrations across several states—the organisation said it had recorded 814 incidents of violence against Christians in 2024, averaging 69.5 incidents per month. “As of November 2025, a staggering 706 incidents targeting Christians” had been documented, the letter stated.

According to the UCF, many of these incidents stemmed from what it termed false allegations of fraudulent conversions. Uttar Pradesh was identified as the state with the highest number of such cases at 184, followed by Chhattisgarh with 157 incidents. The letter also referred to a report titled Criminalising Practice of Faith, which documented instances where police allegedly “colluded with Hindutva groups and turned a blind eye to offences committed against Christians.”

Courtesy: Indian Express