A tense confrontation unfolded in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, on March 31, 2025, when people associated with right-wing Hindutva organizations stopped a bus carrying Christian passengers, accusing them of participating in forced religious conversion activities.
According to local Hindi-language media reports, two buses carrying Christian tribals from Mandla district arrived in Jabalpur, and while returning to Mandla, they were intercepted by a mob belonging to various Hindutva organizations, including Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP). The members of the mob took the buses to the Ranjhi police station, creating a chaotic situation that lasted for hours.
VHP District Coordinator Aarti Shukla claimed they had received complaints that tribal people from Mandla were brought to Jabalpur for religious conversion. “Tribals are being converted through enticement,” she alleged while filing a complaint at the police station. She demanded that all documentation of the tribal passengers be thoroughly examined.
Manas Dwivedi, the Officer in Charge of Ranjhi Police Station, explained that the travellers were residents of Mohgaon in Maharajpur area of Mandla district who had gone to Bhawartaal Garden for a religious visit. “All these people were traveling by bus to visit a church when Hindu religious organizations, including Vishwa Hindu Parishad, stopped the bus on the way. As soon as the bus stopped, the driver fled,” he said.
When questioned by police, the passengers stated that their ancestors had already embraced Christianity and that they too were practicing Christians. “We are already Christians,” they told authorities, challenging the conversion allegations. Police recorded the names and addresses of all individuals in the buses and said the documents would be sent to relevant officials in Mandla district for verification.
On the morning of March 31, Monday, VHP workers led by Sanjay Tiwari and Navin Singh Rajput confronted the Christian group at Bhawartaal Garden. The VHP members alleged that about 40-50 people from Maharajpur in Mandla were brought to a church near the garden for conversion activities. According to reports, when the VHP workers arrived, the Christian visitors quickly boarded their bus to leave the area.
The VHP members followed the bus and eventually stopped it at Bada Patthar in Ranjhi, where they questioned the passengers before forcibly taking them to the police station. The VHP leaders demanded to see the papers of the people in the bus proving that they were Christians. They alleged that among the tribal people were individuals who had been assigned responsibility for carrying out conversions.
However, the Officer in Charge of Ranjhi Police Station contradicted the allegations of forced conversion, stating, “There is no evidence of forced conversion.” He confirmed that police are investigating the entire incident while emphasizing that the passengers appeared to be practicing Christians visiting religious sites, not individuals being taken for conversion.
When Dr. Fr. Davis George, the Vicar General of Jabalpur (Madhya Pradesh) Diocese and Parish Priest of St. Peter and Paul Cathedral Church went to the Ranjhi police station to help the people in the buses that had been stopped, they were brutally attacked by members of VHP at the police station in the presence of the administration. Video evidence confirms both clergy members were physically assaulted which left them shaken. A gathering has been called for April 1, 2025, at Peter & Paul Cathedral in Jabalpur at 1 pm.
The incident has created tension between the administration and Hindu organizations, with both sides standing firm on their positions. While Hindu groups insist on conversion activities targeting tribal communities, authorities have found no immediate evidence supporting these claims and note that the travellers identified themselves as already practicing Christianity.
