A massive Christian conversion racket was unearthed in Anupgarh town of Sri Ganganagar district, Rajasthan, after a young man filed a police complaint about being forcibly converted. The case came to light on September 16 in Ward No. 14 under Anupgarh Police Station limits.
According to SHO Ishwar Jangid, complainant Sandeep (23), a resident of village 24 APD, alleged that he was lured and converted against his will. He named three individuals, Aryan, Vinod, and Paulus Barjo, as the main accused.
Sandeep recounted that about a month ago, he visited a bike spare parts shop near Anupgarh railway station. The shop was run by Aryan and his father Vinod, whom he already knew. During a casual conversation, they inquired about his marital status. When he said he was unmarried, Aryan and Vinod introduced him to Paulus Barjo, a local operative of the Friends Missionary Prayer Band (FMPB).
Sandeep claimed that Barjo assured him that by converting to Christianity, “the Lord would be pleased” and he would soon get married. Later, Aryan, Vinod and Barjo took him to a canal in Prem Nagar where rituals were performed in water, marking his conversion.
After the conversion, Sandeep said, the trio began harassing him and pressuring him to bring more Hindus into the fold. Disturbed by this, he approached the police with a formal complaint.
Based on the complaint, police arrested 47-year-old Paulus Barjo, originally from Katinggel village in Jharkhand. During interrogation, Barjo made startling revelations. He admitted that he had converted 454 Hindus to Christianity in 11 years under the guidance of the FMPB.
Barjo himself was a Hindu before converting to Christianity in 1995. His elder brother had also converted earlier. In 2003, Barjo joined the FMPB headquarters in Chennai and underwent a year-long training in Jhansi. By 2004, he was actively deployed in Rajasthan, Punjab, and Haryana, where he carried out conversion activities.
Between 2008 and 2016, he was stationed in Anupgarh. After stints in other states, he returned to Anupgarh in 2022 and began living at Vinod’s house.
In his confession, Barjo disclosed that the FMPB provided him with an annual target of converting at least 20 Hindus. In return, he was paid a monthly salary of Rs 9,000. Additionally, the organisation covered his rent, food, travel, allowances for spiritual gatherings, and even his children’s school fees.
Police seized crucial documents from his possession, including a register listing details of converted individuals.
Barjo admitted that his strategy involved approaching poor, diseased, and vulnerable Hindus to lure them into Christianity with promises of help and better life prospects. He was not working alone. Names of two more operatives, Shyamlal and Surjeet, have surfaced during investigations.
Together, they were deployed in Anupgarh and the surrounding villages to achieve their targets.
Investigations revealed that the FMPB had already purchased land in the villages of 2 PGM and 36 GB to construct churches. Local resident Vinod reportedly donated Rs 3.5 lakh towards the church construction.
This indicates that the missionary network was not limited to individual conversions but was planning long-term infrastructure for religious expansion in the region.
The revelations have triggered strong reactions from Hindu organisations. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) has demanded stringent action against Barjo and others involved in the racket.
District Minister Krishna Rao of the VHP said, “Christian missionaries like Barjo not only lure innocent Hindus but also use derogatory language against Hindu deities. This cannot be tolerated.”
The police are now probing the wider network of the FMPB in Rajasthan and neighbouring states. With registers, financial trails, and testimonies in hand, authorities suspect that this may just be the tip of the iceberg of a larger missionary network operating in border areas.
For now, Paulus Barjo remains in custody while investigations into Aryan, Vinod, and other operatives continue.
Comments