Priest, 10 others get bail after one month in jail
Eleven Christians, including a Catholic priest, have secured bail after they were remanded under the stringent anti-conversion law in a northern Indian state more than a month ago.
The Barabanki district court in northern Uttar Pradesh on March 12 granted bail to Father Dominic Pinto of Lucknow diocese and 10 others.
“The district judge granted bail to Father Pinto and all those who were arrested with him,” Bishop Gerald John Mathias of Lucknow said.
They were jailed for violating the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2021.
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Police arrested the priest and others on Feb. 5 following a complaint from a right-wing Hindu activist, who portrayed a routine prayer service as a mass religious conversion activity.
The prelate thanked God and all those who prayed for their release.
It was “a totally fabricated case,” said Father Donald D’Souza, diocesan chancellor and spokesperson.
The chancellor, however, did not disclose the conditions set by the court while hearing the bail plea.
Pinto, director of the diocesan pastoral center, was arrested after a Protestant group rented out the center and conducted their prayer service there.
The priest is among 15 persons, including five women, accused of organizing the service and the case was filed in Deva police station in Barabanki district by an activist Brijesh Kumar Vaishya.
