Dehradun (Uttarakhand) [India], July 26 : The Agra Police, in a joint operation with the Uttarakhand Police, have arrested six people in connection with a religious conversion racket allegedly linked to the Chhangur gang, which operates out of Pakistan and Dubai, officials said on Saturday.
Dehradun Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Ajay Singh said a team from the Agra Police had arrived in Uttarakhand about ten days ago as part of 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.
He added that a case had been registered based on Mariyam's complaint, and another victim was also traced during the probe.
"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 said.
SSP Singh also explained how the accused attempted to bypass legal provisions.
"As anti-conversion laws have been implemented in Uttarakhand, the victims were called to Delhi for conversion," he said.
He said the Dehradun Police are working closely with their counterparts in Agra to gather evidence and build the case. The investigation is ongoing.
Meanwhile, on Saturday in Balrampur district of Uttar Pradesh, the administration began a bulldozer action against the properties of Sabroz, an aide of Chhangur Baba alias Jalaluddin, who is accused in the mass conversion case. The demolition was carried out under tight police security.
According to Balrampur Circle Officer Raghavendra Pratap, the construction was found to be illegal and the owner had been served notices earlier.
"We found this construction to be illegal. Notices were issued to remove the illegal parts of building, but since no action was taken by the owner, police and administration is here to demolish it," Pratap told ANI.
Additional Superintendent of Police Vishal Pandey also said that Sabroz had been given due opportunity to comply with the orders.
"He was duly given a notice earlier for this illegal construction... He was given all the chances to obey to the orders, but when he failed to do that, the government is demolishing the illegal construction," he said.
Earlier, the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) arrested another accused in the same case, identified as Rajesh Kumar Upadhyay. His arrest came days after the arrests of Chhangur Baba alias Jamaluddin and his close aide Nasreen, who are believed to be the masterminds behind the syndicate.
According to Uttar Pradesh ADG (Law and Order) Amitabh Yash, the gang had been operating for more than 15 years and used various tactics such as honey-trapping, administrative pressure, targeting minors, and involving influential individuals to facilitate conversions.
"A significant amount of foreign funding has been traced to the gang," he said, adding that 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," he said.
Yash added that all 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 sought a copy of the FIR for a separate probe into the financial angle. ED officials suspect a larger conspiracy, given the proximity of the region to the Nepal border and the possibility of demographic changes.
On Wednesday, the ED conducted raids at 14 locations, 12 in Utraula in Balrampur district and two in Mumbai, as part of the investigation.