The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has issued notices to the District Magistrate and the Superintendent of Police, Puri, on Ocober 1, after taking cognisance of grave allegations of forced Christian conversions, unlawful burials and organised communal threats near Odisha’s most revered Hindu pilgrimage sites the Jagannath Temple and the Konark Sun Temple. The action follows an emergency complaint filed by residents of Penthakata on 27 September 2025 alleging a “mass-scale plan to Christianise the Puri coast” under the guise of religious revival events; the NHRC has called for an Action Taken Report within two weeks and directed that all findings be shared with the Bench Secretariat for further examination.
Pastors Under NHRC Lens: Pattabhi and David Named in Puri Conversion Plot
At the centre of the NHRC complaint are two key figures, Pastor Joshua Pattabhi and Tatipaka David alias T. David, accused of spearheading a covert Christian religious conversion network along Odisha’s coast, particularly near Puri’s Jagannath Temple and Konark Sun Temple with intent to alter the region’s demography.
The illegal Christian conversion event in Penthakata Puri was particularly targeting to convert poor Telugu & Odia Fisherman families especially women, minor children in the name of conducting “fasting revival”.
Pastor Joshua Pattabhi – The ‘Night Conversion’ Specialist
Identified as the chief organiser of the conversion network, Pastor Joshua Pattabhi operates from Apostolic Fellowship Ministries in Rajahmundry, Andhra Pradesh. His online sermons and YouTube videos depict large-scale conversion gatherings across Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, and Odisha, often held late at night. Locals describe these as “night conversion drives”, with Pattabhi openly asserting that “if a woman and children converts, the whole family follows.”
According to complaints before the NHRC, his sessions reportedly combine psychological persuasion, monetary inducements, and the use of so-called ‘magic remedies’ or unknown substances that cause participants, particularly women and minors, to lose consciousness, an act potentially breaching provisions of the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954.
Residents further allege that Pattabhi’s operations are sustained by foreign funding, with the pastor frequently travelling abroad to solicit support for his evangelical missions. In one widely circulated video, he boasted of converting 75 minor girls in Chhattisgarh during a night event, which locals condemned as “a blatant mockery of Indian law and culture.”
In Puri, investigators say Pattabhi has sought to replicate his conversion model, organising discreet prayer meetings and “healing sessions” targeting women and children.
Tatipaka David alias T. David — The Local Enabler
T. David, who heads the Bethesda Revival Fellowship Church, Naringhapuram, is alleged to be Pattabhi’s Odisha link. His videos under call for “revival” among coastal fishing communities. He reportedly handles logistics, mobilisation, and recruitment, targeting poor women, minors, and disabled persons with promises of money, medical help, and education.
Reportedly David’s base at Christ Church, Penthakata, is cited as the hub of these activities, where he works alongside Pastor Mark to “alter the demography of Lord Jagannath’s land.”
Burials on the Beach
The complaint also accuses Pattabhi’s followers of burying unknown bodies in coffins on Penthakata beach, allegedly to illegally claim land and convert the coastal stretch into a Christian cemetery. Locals provided geotagged videos showing the burials, suspecting a link to organ trafficking or criminal concealment in violation of forest and coastal protection laws.
Alleged Collusion and Negligence of Police Department
The complainants have also filed a follow-up petition on 2 October 2025 accusing Puri SP Prateek Singh and Sea Beach Police Station IIC Manas Chakra of wilfully allowing the conversion event to proceed despite prior warnings.
Speaking with Organiser, residents say they personally visited the SP’s office, alerting him to the threat. However, instead of acting, the SP allegedly replied dismissively, saying “Haan thik hai…” and assured them that “police will only videotape prayers.”
On 1 October, as the event began at 5 p.m., Pastor Pattabhi arrived and conducted “night conversions”, live-streamed on YouTube via his channel “Apostolic Fellowship”. The video reportedly showed minor girls, elderly women, and disabled women undergoing faith rituals. Within hours, the video was deleted, suggesting an attempt to destroy evidence a violation of Section 204 IPC (Destruction of Evidence).
The residents allege that the police were fully aware of the event’s nature, yet chose to remain silent. They suspect “a nexus” between local police officers and the conversion organisers, claiming that undertakings were used as cover to legitimise illegal religious activity.
According to the complaint, nine illegal churches have been constructed in Penthakata with foreign funding, serving as “conversion command centres.” These structures, locals allege,
double as hubs for drug trafficking, prostitution, and smuggling, posing a direct threat to coastal and national security.
The expansion of this missionary infrastructure, residents warn, forms part of a long-term plan to control India’s eastern coastline, “from Kanyakumari to Puri,” through religious conversion of coastal fishing communities — a demographic shift with strategic implications.
NHRC Action
Taking serious note of the allegations, the NHRC has directed the DM and SP of Puri to submit a detailed Action Taken Report and examine potential violations of:
Orissa Freedom of Religion Act, 1967
Juvenile Justice (Care & Protection) Act, 2015
Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986
Scheduled Castes and Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989
Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954
The complainants have further sought disciplinary action through the DoPT against SP Prateek Singh and IIC Manas Chakra, and a central multi-agency probe involving MHA and NIA into the conversion nexus, foreign funding, and illegal burials.
Historically, Odisha has been a prime target of Christian evangelists for decades, with poor and innocent Vanavasi communities caught between Naxal and missionary forces. Swami Laxmananda Saraswati, who worked to strengthen local cultural roots, paid with his life for resisting this design. Though evangelisation is prohibited in designated tribal areas, these groups continue to defy the law, exploiting every opportunity to weaken indigenous traditions and faith. Their claims of “uplifting” locals mask a deeper agenda — one that insults the community, disconnects them from their roots, and revives the medieval zeal of evangelism, this time through the exploitation of women and children under the guise of faith and law.
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