Bhubaneswar: In yet another grim example of the rising tide of religious intolerance in India, a Catholic nun from the Sacred Hearts Congregation found herself at the centre of a harrowing episode that unfolded aboard a train and extended into a traumatic 18hour police ordeal. The incident, rooted in false allegations of religious conversion leveled by members of the Bajrang Dal a right-wing Hindu nationalist organization highlights an increasingly dangerous climate for minorities, particularly Christians, in certain parts of the country.

The events began on a seemingly ordinary day when Sister Seena and another nun, accompanied by two young postulants (women preparing to enter the convent), boarded a train from Delhi to Rourkela, Odisha. Midway through the journey, in Jhansi district (Uttar Pradesh), a group of Bajrang Dal-affiliated men began interrogating the nuns, accusing them of attempting to forcibly convert the two younger women to Christianity.

Despite clear identification documents and repeated verbal affirmations from the postulants that they were traveling of their own free will and were indeed part of the religious order, the situation quickly escalated. The self-appointed moral vigilantes refused to relent and called in the Government Railway Police (GRP), claiming a forced conversion racket was underway.

Once the train reached Jhansi Junction, the four women were forcibly deboarded and taken into police custody. What followed was an excruciating 18-hour-long ordeal, marked by repeated interrogations, public humiliation, and emotional trauma. According to sources close to the victims, the police seemed more inclined to placate the mob outside the station—comprised of Bajrang Dal supporters—than to objectively evaluate the facts at hand.

The nuns were not allowed to contact their superiors or legal counsel for hours, and their pleas that the accusations were unfounded went unheeded. It was only after intense media scrutiny and high-level intervention from senior Church and administrative authorities that the women were finally released—completely exonerated, but deeply scarred.

The incident has drawn condemnation from across the political spectrum. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan—whose state is home to many Christian clergy, including the affected nuns—wrote directly to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, expressing concern over the misuse of the law and police machinery to harass innocent citizens. He demanded strict action against those responsible for the humiliation and wrongful detention of the women.

However, in typical fashion, the Bajrang Dal denied any wrongdoing. A spokesperson claimed that their activists were merely "alerting authorities" about what they believed to be a case of conversion—a statement many have called disingenuous and part of a larger pattern of minority persecution masked as moral vigilance.

Despite the arrests of two Sangh Parivar-affiliated individuals—Anchal Adjaria (VHP's Jhansi unit secretary) and Purukesh Amarya (Bajrang Dal district vice-president)—the four ABVP members who first raised the false alarm have not been booked or questioned, raising serious concerns about selective accountability and systemic bias.

Unfortunately, this case is not an anomaly. India has witnessed a growing number of such incidents where religious minorities—particularly Christians and Muslims—are harassed, attacked, or falsely accused by fringe outfits emboldened by a larger climate of impunity. The Bajrang Dal, in particular, has developed a long record of engaging in moral policing, violence, and intimidation—often with little or no legal consequences.

Human rights activists argue that laws against forced conversion, though important in principle, are being increasingly weaponized by right-wing groups to target religious minorities. These laws, vague and broad in scope, allow police to act on mere suspicion, often without proper evidence—creating fertile ground for vigilantism.

The 18-hour nightmare endured by Sister Seena and her companions is not just a case of individual suffering—it is a reflection of a society where bigotry is gaining legitimacy and hate is being normalized. As India continues to grapple with questions of secularism, religious freedom, and rule of law, this incident stands as a stark reminder of how fragile those ideals have become.

While the women were eventually released without charges, no amount of bureaucratic relief can undo the trauma inflicted. The fight now, many believe, is not only for justice in this case but for reclaiming the constitutional promise of equality and dignity for all citizens, regardless of faith.