Pollachi, which had recently hit headlines after a court convicted and sentenced all nine accused to life imprisonment till death in a sexual assault case involving college students and young women, is once again in the spotlight. This time, a government nurse and a pastor have been accused of taking schoolchildren to an illegal prayer hall and forcing them to participate in Christian prayers. The police have allegedly refused to register an FIR, citing pressure from ‘higher-ups’.
The incident occurred in Uncha Velampatti in Pollachi taluk. Government school students were allegedly taken in a van to a nearby village on the Udumalaipet road. There, they were taken to an illegal prayer hall and forced to kneel and pray. The children were reportedly told, “Jesus is the only God who can save us from all our sins.”
This came to light when a parent lodged a complaint with the police about an alleged attempt at religious conversion.
S. Punithavathi, wife of K. Surenkumar, submitted a complaint at the East Police Station in Pollachi, stating: “I have two daughters. My younger daughter, S. Krithika, aged 14, is studying in Year 8 at the Uncha Velampatti Government School. On 2 May, the school management informed parents that there would be a class for adolescent girls and that the Transfer Certificate (TC) would be issued after the session. We were asked to drop off our children at 9:30 am. As instructed, I dropped my daughter at 9:30 am and returned at 10:30 am to collect her. However, I could not find my daughter. When I inquired, I was told that government nurse Bhavani had taken the girls in a van to a nearby church. I returned home, took my two-wheeler, and reached the prayer hall opposite the RTO office.”
Continuing her statement, she said, “When I tried to enter the prayer hall, Pastor Selvaraj stopped me, which led to a heated argument. He said that if I went inside, other parents would follow and the prayer would be disrupted. The pastor hit me, pushed me to the ground, and threatened to kill me and demanded I vacate the premises. I raised an alarm and insisted on taking my daughter back. They had taken my daughter without our knowledge and attempted to convert her to Christianity. I request the police to take action against the pastor and others involved in the kidnapping and forced conversion, including nurse Bhavani and the van driver, by registering a case under the appropriate sections.”
A post on X featuring a video of BJP functionary Muruganandam claimed: “It’s shocking to learn that 40 Pollachi schoolgirls were removed from school and drugged. A few parents located the desolate location, broke down the building’s doors, and rescued their children. Each parent was paid ₹10 lakh to remain silent. Tamil Nadu is in a perilous position due to the widespread presence of narcotics in schools, colleges, railway stations, and localities.”
It's shocking to learn that 40 Pollachi schoolgirls were removed from school and drugged.
A few parents located the desolate location, knocked down the building's doors, and saved their kids.
Each parent received ten lakh rupees for keeping this information from the media.… pic.twitter.com/xBwTRXMJFV
— Tathvam-asi (@tathvamasi6) May 25, 2025
However, Balachander, a Hindu Munnani functionary who reached the spot upon hearing of the incident, told Organiser that there was no evidence of drugging or sexual assault. He stated that the children were taken, without the parents’ knowledge, to an illegal prayer hall.
“On May 2, parents were asked to drop their children at an Anganwadi centre next to the school. One parent, when arriving at 10:30 am to collect her child, found her missing. After searching the area, a villager mentioned that a nurse or health worker had taken the children to a church. Apparently, this was not the first time she had done so — she often took them under the pretext of cultural events or similar. The children were taken to Chunnampalayam, around 4 km from the school. When the parents reached the location, they saw the children kneeling and praying. The children were told that Jesus is the only God. After a physical altercation and much denial, the parent was finally allowed to take her daughter back.
Upon hearing this, we from Hindu Munnani visited the spot and informed the police. The health worker admitted to taking the children for prayers and conversion without informing the parents. The police initially assured us they would register a case. However, to our surprise, they did not. When questioned, the higher-ups instructed them not to register an FIR. We were told to speak to the Superintendent of Police. After our persistent efforts, they agreed to issue acknowledgement of complaint. Yet, no FIR has been filed to date. The children were given food that reportedly had a strange odour. Although I don’t believe they were drugged, something was clearly wrong.”
The complaint copy contains details provided by one of the parents whose daughter was taken to the illegal prayer hall. The fact that no FIR has been registered so far reveals the apathy of the police and the appeasement politics practised by the DMK government.
