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A special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court in Bilaspur on Saturday, August 2, granted bail to two Kerala-based nuns and a co-accused in a case involving allegations of human trafficking and forced religious conversion. The three were arrested nine days ago following a complaint filed by a local Bajrang Dal functionary.
Principal District and Sessions Judge Sirajuddin Qureshi, presiding over the NIA court, granted bail to Sisters Preethi Mary and Vandana Francis, along with Sukaman Mandavi, on the condition that they surrender their passports, furnish a personal bond of Rs 50,000 each, and provide two sureties.
The decision to grant bail comes two days after the court reserved its verdict during a hearing on August 1. Public Prosecutor Dauram Chandravanshi had opposed bail, citing the early stages of the investigation.
The three were detained by railway police at Durg railway station on July 25 after they were accused of trafficking and attempting to forcibly convert three tribal women from Narayanpur district to Christianity. All three accused have been lodged at Durg Central Jail since their arrest.
During the hearing, counsel for the nuns, Amrito Das, argued that the women involved were adults and had been practising Christianity for several years. He also pointed out that the accused were not remanded in police custody and that the alleged victims had since returned to their homes. Statements from the victims’ parents reportedly confirmed that their daughters had not been taken against their will or misled.
Earlier, a fast-track court had referred the matter to the NIA court, citing the human trafficking charges, which fall under central jurisdiction.