NEW DELHI: The Agra and Uttarakhand police , in a joint effort, have arrested six individuals linked to the Chhangur gang, an international religious conversion racket operating out of Pakistan and Dubai. Confirming the arrests on Saturday, Dehradun senior superintendent of police (SSP) Ajay Singh also revealed how the accused, Chhangur Baba , tried to bypass the state's anti-conversion law by shifting the process to Delhi.
SSP Singh said the Agra Police team had been in Uttarakhand for the last ten days as part of the investigation. He added that a case had been registered based on Mariyam's complaint, and another victim had also been identified during the investigation.
"A team of Agra Police from UP came here 10 days ago in regard to a case. A man named Abdul Rehman was converted to Islam from Hinduism in 2014-15. When we investigated the case, we learnt about a victim whose converted name was Mariyam. She was pressurised for conversion," said SSP Singh.
"We also traced another victim, whose converted name was Sumaiyya. All the accused in the case were associated with a gang in Pakistan and Dubai. All six main accused in the case have been arrested by the Agra Police. The investigation is in a primary stage. And both cases of conversion have been registered," he added, as quoted by ANI. "As anti-conversion laws have been implemented in Uttarakhand, the victims were called to Delhi for conversion."
Meanwhile, in Balrampur district of Uttar Pradesh, authorities began demolishing properties linked to Sabroz, an aide of Chhangur Baba alias Jalaluddin, the main accused in the mass conversion case .
Balrampur circle officer Raghavendra Pratap said the construction was found to be illegal and prior notices had been served.
Earlier, the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) arrested another accused in the case, Rajesh Kumar Upadhyay. His arrest followed those of Chhangur Baba and his close aide Nasreen, believed to be the masterminds of the alleged syndicate.
According to ADG (law and order) Amitabh Yash, the gang had been operating for over 15 years, using various methods including honey-trapping, exploiting minors, and administrative pressure to facilitate religious conversions.
"A significant amount of foreign funding has been traced to the gang," he said, as reported by ANI. "The syndicate used nearly 40 bank accounts and had different rate cards for various types of conversions. The ATS is tracking the sources of these funds.
Yash added that properties acquired using illegal funds would be seized and demolished.
"Chhangur Baba and his main associate, Neetu alias Nasreen, will be interrogated regarding their network, financial trail, and assets. The process to seize and demolish their illegally acquired properties has begun. All individuals against whom there is evidence have been arrested. Mohammed Ahmed is also named in the case, and further investigation is underway," the ADG said.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has also stepped in, seeking a copy of the FIR to probe the financial trail. Officials believe the proximity of the region to the Nepal border could indicate a wider conspiracy involving demographic changes .
As part of its probe, the ED conducted raids at 14 locations on Wednesday- 12 in Utraula, Balrampur, and two in Mumbai- marking a significant escalation in the investigation.
SSP Singh said the Agra Police team had been in Uttarakhand for the last ten days as part of the investigation. He added that a case had been registered based on Mariyam's complaint, and another victim had also been identified during the investigation.
"A team of Agra Police from UP came here 10 days ago in regard to a case. A man named Abdul Rehman was converted to Islam from Hinduism in 2014-15. When we investigated the case, we learnt about a victim whose converted name was Mariyam. She was pressurised for conversion," said SSP Singh.
"We also traced another victim, whose converted name was Sumaiyya. All the accused in the case were associated with a gang in Pakistan and Dubai. All six main accused in the case have been arrested by the Agra Police. The investigation is in a primary stage. And both cases of conversion have been registered," he added, as quoted by ANI. "As anti-conversion laws have been implemented in Uttarakhand, the victims were called to Delhi for conversion."
Meanwhile, in Balrampur district of Uttar Pradesh, authorities began demolishing properties linked to Sabroz, an aide of Chhangur Baba alias Jalaluddin, the main accused in the mass conversion case .
Balrampur circle officer Raghavendra Pratap said the construction was found to be illegal and prior notices had been served.
Earlier, the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) arrested another accused in the case, Rajesh Kumar Upadhyay. His arrest followed those of Chhangur Baba and his close aide Nasreen, believed to be the masterminds of the alleged syndicate.
According to ADG (law and order) Amitabh Yash, the gang had been operating for over 15 years, using various methods including honey-trapping, exploiting minors, and administrative pressure to facilitate religious conversions.
"A significant amount of foreign funding has been traced to the gang," he said, as reported by ANI. "The syndicate used nearly 40 bank accounts and had different rate cards for various types of conversions. The ATS is tracking the sources of these funds.
Yash added that properties acquired using illegal funds would be seized and demolished.
"Chhangur Baba and his main associate, Neetu alias Nasreen, will be interrogated regarding their network, financial trail, and assets. The process to seize and demolish their illegally acquired properties has begun. All individuals against whom there is evidence have been arrested. Mohammed Ahmed is also named in the case, and further investigation is underway," the ADG said.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has also stepped in, seeking a copy of the FIR to probe the financial trail. Officials believe the proximity of the region to the Nepal border could indicate a wider conspiracy involving demographic changes .
As part of its probe, the ED conducted raids at 14 locations on Wednesday- 12 in Utraula, Balrampur, and two in Mumbai- marking a significant escalation in the investigation.
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