UP religious conversion row: Chhangur Baba’s landlord asked to pay Rs 8.5 lakh as demolition cost

Balrampur Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Satya Pal stated that the house owner has been given 15 days to pay the fine; failing to do so, a recovery certificate will be issued against her. He added that the compensation amount was calculated based on the expenses incurred over the three days it took to demolish the portion of the house, which stood on nearly two biswa of land.

Along with Baba and Neetu, his son Mehboob and Neetu’s husband Naveen alias Jamaluddin are also under arrest in the same case. The police stated that Neetu and Naveen, originally from Mumbai, had relocated to Madhpur with their daughter, purchased land, and built a large house spanning approximately four bighas of land, where Baba later came to live with them.

As Neetu and her husband Naveen are in judicial custody and no one is available to receive the notice, the district administration pasted it on the wall of the house, which is currently at the centre of the religious conversion case.

The SDM stated that the compensation was calculated based on the expenses incurred during the three consecutive days of demolition.

The SDM said that on the first day of the demolition, nine JCB machines were used, followed by eight JCBs on each of the next two days. The wages of 10 labourers involved in the demolition, along with the three-day salaries of government officials and personnel engaged in the operation, were also included in the cost. Additionally, an electricity department team was called in to disconnect the power supply during the drive.

He added that the total cost of the demolition came to Rs 8.09 lakh, while damages for encroaching on government land were assessed at Rs 46,200, bringing the total recovery amount to Rs 8,55,398.

The Uttar Pradesh Police said the case of illegal religious conversion came to light after a complaint was received about some “suspicious persons” living in Madhpur who had, within a year, acquired property worth crores of rupees, raising suspicions of foreign funding.

During the investigation, the police alleged they uncovered a racket targeting poor and vulnerable non-Muslims, including widows, who were systematically coerced into converting through allurements, financial aid, and false promises of marriage. Those who resisted were allegedly threatened with false legal cases.

They had “fixed rates” for conversion, as per the police, based on caste – Rs 15-16 lakh for converting a Brahmin, Sardar, or Kshatriya Hindu woman; Rs 10-12 lakh per woman from backwards castes; and Rs 8-10 lakh for those from other castes.

After the investigation, the police registered a case last year at the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) police station in Lucknow.

As the probe began, Baba went into hiding. A non-bailable warrant was issued against him, and a reward of Rs 50,000 was announced for information leading to his arrest.

According to the police, some of Baba’s first successful conversions were Neetu, Naveen, and their daughter: a Sindhi family from Mumbai, who were allegedly “brainwashed” into converting to Islam.

The police also claim to have evidence that members of the alleged racket travelled to Islamic countries nearly 40 times and opened more than 40 bank accounts—either in their names or in the names of organisations—with transactions totalling around Rs 100 crore.