Bail pleas of nuns arrested in Chhattisgarh dismissed; dispute between left leaders and police

RAIPUR: The bail pleas of the two Malayali nuns arrested in Chattisgarh on charges of forced conversion and human trafficking, have been dismissed. The bail pleas of Sister Vandana Francis of Thalassery Udayagiri Parish and Sister Preethy Mary of Angamaly Elavoor Parish have been dismissed. The two nuns will continue in the central jail in Durg. The bail application will now be heard in the sessions court. The arrest of the nuns was recorded on Sunday.

The incident happened on Friday at Durg railway station. The police took action on a complaint from a group of people in the area. The nuns working in Fatima Hospital in Agra, had reached Durg railway station to pick up three girls for domestic help. The girls were waiting for the nuns here. Meanwhile, the TTE arrived and asked for tickets, but the girls did not have platform tickets. When they inquired about the situation, the girls said that the nuns were coming to pick them up. However, the TTE did not believe this and informed the local activists.

The people alleged that forced conversion and human trafficking was taking place. This led to a big protest at the railway station. An assistant was with the nuns. The girls had said that they had come on their own and were going to work in a hospital. The girls also showed people their parental consent and identity documents. However, the nuns were taken to the police station for further investigation. The protection of the girls has been taken over by the Women's Welfare Protection Committee.

Meantime, the police stopped the Left leaders who had come to meet the nuns. The police informed that permission could not be given after 3 pm. The leaders then had an argument with the police in front of Durg Jail. The group demanded that at least the MPs should be given permission. The police asked the leaders to come at 9 am tomorrow.