Authorities in Madhya Pradesh’s Sehore district on Monday bulldozed allegedly illegal portions of a house belonging to a man identified as Jabbar Khan after he was accused of forcible religious conversion and conducting Christian prayer meetings, Zee News reported.

On August 18, Hindutva groups Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal had “conducted searches” at Khan’s home in the Chandakpuri area of Sehore city, allegedly after receiving information about alleged forced conversions taking place there, according to Aaj Tak.

Both outfits are part of a group of Hindutva organisations led by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the parent organisation of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.

A prayer meeting was allegedly being conducted inside the house at the time. A heated argument broke out between the attendees of the meeting and the two Hindutva groups.

A video of the incident was also circulated widely on social media.

Alt News reported that the video was uploaded by an Instagram user in collaboration with an account named “Bajrang Dal Sehore”. The caption of the video claimed that the police acted on “information of a religious conversion racket” in Sehore and raided the house.

It added that information was given to the police by Bajrang Dal workers. The caption also said that “those present at the spot, during questioning, expressed support for Christianity”, Alt News reported.

The video showed the Bible and other Christian books in the home. It also showed a man who identified himself as Khan, who could be heard saying that the house belonged to him. He added that those gathered were praying to god and had been meeting for two years.

In the video, Khan could also be heard saying that everyone present at the meeting belonged to different faiths.

Bajrang Dal members were seen threatening the attendees inside the house, Alt News reported. The fact-checking website said that another video on Facebook showed police officers at the house.

An unidentified police officer from the Sehore Police Station rejected claims of religious conversion in the house, Alt News reported.

“All those who were present in that room still hold their birth names; they have not converted to any other religion,” the officer was quoted as saying. “They organise a prayer meet there every Sunday, and no one has complained about any forceful conversion.”

The officer added: “…We have registered the application from the complainants, and further investigation is being carried out. No one has been detained or arrested so far.”

However, Aaj Tak reported that a case had been filed against Khan and his wife, Tahira Khan, under the 2021 Madhya Pradesh Freedom of Religion Act.

Jabbar Khan was also arrested, according to the news channel.

A police officer who was also present during the prayer meeting was suspended.

Following the incident, the municipality issued a notice to Jabbar Khan seeking the construction permit for his home within 15 days, Zee News reported. However, the permit was reportedly not produced.

Reports alleged that Jabbar Khan had constructed an upper floor without permission and was carrying out conversion activities, according to Zee News.

There are no provisions in Indian law that allow for the demolition of property as a punitive measure. However, the practice has become commonplace in Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled states.

In November, the Supreme Court held as illegal the practice of demolishing properties of persons accused of crimes as a punitive measure. It said that processes must be followed before removing allegedly illegal encroachments.

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