Jharkhand minority fee takes cognisance of right-wing outfits ‘questioning’ nun, tribal minors

The Jharkhand State Minority Commission (JSMC) on Tuesday (September 23, 2025) took suo motu cognisance of the alleged questioning by a Hindu outfit of a nun and 19 tribal minors at a railway station for about 5 hours on “suspicion of human trafficking and religious conversion”, an official stated.

Members of Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) had allegedly questioned the catholic nun and tribal youngsters over non secular conversion at Tatanagar railway station on Friday (September 20) night time after they deboarded the South Bihar Express.

JSMC Vice-Chairperson Pranesh Solomon advised PTI that they’ve taken up the “serious” subject of harassment of minorities by alleged right-wing outfits on the Tatanagar Station.

“We came to know about the detention of the Catholic nun and the minor boys and girls by the Railway Police through the media. We will be writing to the district commissioner, senior superintendent of police (SSP) and the Railway Police to furnish the reasons for the detention of the nun and the minors even after not finding any valid reasons for the charges labelled against them by some right-wing outfits,” the official stated.

“Our team would be visiting Jamshedpur (Tatanagar is the railway station for Jamshedpur city in East Singhbhum) in the last week of September and meeting the officials concerned and the Catholic institution officials who had organised the skill development training session,” Mr. Solomon added.

A minority outfit alleged that the Catholic nun and tribal minors have been questioned for about 5 hours by members of Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad leaders by the GRP quickly after they received down from the South Bihar Express on Friday (September 20) night time.

The leaders had lodged a written criticism with the GRP Tatanagar alleging human trafficking of minors and spiritual conversion, the outfit members claimed.

Ratan Tirkey, a former Tribal Advisory Council member, alleged that members of the right-wing outfits had circulated photographs and movies of the minor tribals with out their consent on social media and different platforms.

Father Birender Tete director of Samekit Jan Vikas Kendra in Sundernagar at Jamshedpur, who had been to the Tatanagar station and persuaded the railway police to launch the minors and the nuns, advised PTI {that a} complete of 16 ladies and three boys from totally different components of Seraikela-Kharsawan district had include consent of their dad and mom to attend life ability improvement session at their centre on Saturday and Sunday (September 21-22).

“However, due to the ordeal faced by the minors at the Tatanagar Station we had to cancel the session as all the boys and girls were traumatised and returned home,” Father Tete.

Deputy Superintendent of Police, GRP, Jayshree Kujur, stated that an investigation into the case is underway, however prima facie, there was no conclusive proof of any non secular conversion and human trafficking.