Palghar: Police have registered a case against 22 women for allegedly attempting religious conversion and outraging religious feelings in Palghar district, an official said on Tuesday.The incident occurred in Wakadpada village on Aug 21.According to assistant police inspector (API) Ajit Sable of Mokhada police station, an FIR was registered under Sections 299 (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings) and 3(5) (common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). “While 22 women have been named as accused in connection with the crime, two primary suspects have been identified as Satyavati Balkrishna Kunche (46), a resident of Ulhasnagar in Thane district, and Kusum Shivram Kambdi, a local resident,” he said.A complaint in this connection was lodged by an 18-year-old student, who alleged that on Friday afternoon, a group of women visited his home. Of them, Kunche offered him religious texts including the ‘New Testament’ free, claiming that reading the books would cure illness and shield him from diseases, Sable said.When the complainant refused to accept the literature, the woman allegedly disparaged Hindu deities and beliefs, urging him to stop worshipping them and suggesting that he join Christianity instead. After the complainant informed local villagers, including Milind Zole, residents intercepted the group, the API added.Preliminary investigation found that the women had arrived from Hyderabad through contacts established by local resident Kusum Kambdi.“A detailed investigation into the matter is currently underway and no arrests have been made so far,” the police officer said.
