Christian couple sentenced to five years in prison for ‘attempting to convert’

A special court in Ambedkar Nagar, Uttar Pradesh, India has convicted a Christian couple of attempting to convert under the state’s anti-conversion law, sentencing each of them to five years’ imprisonment and fines of 25,000 rupees.

Jose and Sheeja Pappachan were sentenced on 22 January under Section 3 of the state’s Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act and the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, which prohibits religious conversion through force, misrepresentation, coercion, or other fraudulent means.

The complaint was first filed by Chandrika Prasad Upadhyay, a member of India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) serving in the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly, in January 2023, accusing the couple of attempting to convert vulnerable people belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes to Christianity. The couple has denied the allegations, stating that all they had done was provide education and encourage sobriety.

The couple was immediately jailed and spent eight months in detention whilst their trial was ongoing. In September 2023 they were granted bail by the Allahabad High Court on the basis that ‘providing good teachings, distributing the Holy Bible, encouraging children to get an education, organizing assemblies of villagers and conducting bhandaras [community meals], instructing villagers not to argue and also not drink liquor does not amount to allurement.’

The court also pointed out that at the time the complaint was made the aforementioned law only permitted alleged victims or close family members to file a complaint. However, the law was amended on 29 July 2024 to allow third parties to file a complaint.

The order of the special court has been heavily criticised by Christian leaders in India. The verdict has also caused severe distress to the couple, with Mr Pappachan having to be hospitalised for severe anxiety. The couple can appeal the sentencing at the Allahabad High Court or the Supreme Court of India.

CSW’s Founder President Mervyn Thomas said: ‘CSW is alarmed by the manner in which Christians in India today are being systematically attacked. For merely exercising their constitutional rights and adhering to their religious convictions, this couple has become the target of a harmful piece of legislation. CSW urges the authorities to objectively investigate the matter and not be influenced by far-right religious rhetoric which has caused immense division in Indian society.’

Note to Editors:

1. Special courts are established by the federal government to provide swift trials for specific offences. They have limited jurisdiction.