Police raid Catholic seminary in Madhya Pradesh over conversion claims; 23 students questioned, documents cleared. Critics cite anti-Christian bias in BJP-ruled state. Probe ongoing.
Newsroom (06/11/2025, Gaudium Press ) Police and senior officials raided a Catholic seminary in Madhya Pradesh on November 5, interrogating students and searching the premises for nearly five hours following accusations of illegal religious conversions, in a move critics say reflects growing hostility toward Christians in the BJP-ruled state.
Father Harshal Ammaparambil, rector of St. Joseph’s Minor Seminary under the Gwalior diocese, told UCA News the unannounced operation began after a November 5 report in the Hindi daily Dainik Bhaskar claimed the institution was admitting boys from poor indigenous families, providing education and improved living conditions, and converting them to Catholicism to train as priests.
“Police arrived unannounced and demanded to conduct a search on an accusation we were involved in religious conversions,” Father Ammaparambil said on November 6. The 25-year-old seminary, which trains Catholic students for the priesthood, houses 23 seminarians from Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, and Chhattisgarh.
Officers “searched every nook and cranny” and questioned all students, he added. The raid involved Crime Branch officials, senior police, and a Sub-Divisional Magistrate. The district collector has formed a three-member committee to investigate and report within five days.
Authorities departed after seminary officials presented parental consent letters, baptismal certificates, parish recommendations, and property documents. “We have nothing to hide. We admit only Catholics and are ready to face any investigation,” Father Ammaparambil said, dismissing the newspaper report as “totally false.” The seminary is consulting lawyers about potential action against Dainik Bhaskar for “publishing baseless news.”
Father Pratap Toppo, diocesan public relations officer, called the article “misleading and maligning,” accusing the outlet of failing to verify facts. A government official declined further comment, saying, “A probe is on. Let us wait for it to conclude.”
Madhya Pradesh is one of 12 Indian states with anti-conversion laws requiring prior approval for religious conversions, measures often criticized for targeting minorities.
Catholic leader Daniel John in Bhopal condemned the raid’s intensity: “The seriousness shown… shows how the government machinery tried hard to find fault with us based on a baseless media report. The same vigor is not seen when our people are attacked.”
Christian leaders allege escalating aggression from right-wing Hindu groups aligned with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which opposes missionary work in pursuit of a Hindu-majority nation. Similar raids have targeted Christian schools and orphanages in recent years.
Christians comprise about 0.27 percent of Madhya Pradesh’s 72 million residents, while Hindus, including many indigenous communities, form around 80 percent.
- Raju Hasmukh with files from UCA News
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