Police in Kota have registered a case against two Christian missionaries for alleged religious conversion under the recently enacted Rajasthan Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2025. The accused, Chandi Varghese from Delhi and Arun John from Kota, were detained following a complaint filed by officials of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal.
Kota’s Borkheda Police Station Officer Devesh Bhardwaj said the complaint alleged that the missionaries had invited people to the Beersheba Church on Canal Road between November 4 and 6, under the pretext of a spiritual discourse, and allegedly converted them. “Some videos and other evidence were also presented, and the event was broadcast live on social media,” he said.
The case has been registered under Section 299 of the BNS for hurting religious sentiments, and under Sections 3 and 5 of the Rajasthan Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2025. The law, notified by the state government on October 29, 2025, makes religious conversion a non-bailable offense with stringent punishments.
