In Uttar Pradesh’s Mirzapur, authorities have demolished an allegedly illegal church built on forest department land. This action is part of a larger crackdown on alleged religious conversion activities in marginalized tribal areas.
According to the news portal Aaj Tak, the demolition was carried out with a heavy police presence using bulldozers. The church and a building were reportedly constructed illegally by Vinod Kumar and Ramakant in the forest area of Ahirura police station. Residents were allegedly gathered and lured into conversion activities at this site, according to the report.
Police received complaints about the illegal church and the conversion activities, leading to an investigation. The findings said that the church was built unlawfully on forest department land. After receiving a complaint, the sub-district magistrate’s court issued notices to both Kumar and Ramakant, ordering them to appear in court. However, neither appeared, prompting the police and administrative team to demolish the church with bulldozers.
Police Superintendent Abhinandan stated, “The church was constructed on forest department land illegally. We also received continuous complaints about conversion activities there. This action was taken based on those complaints, and any future complaints will be investigated and acted upon accordingly.
