Balrampur

Authorities in Uttar Pradesh's Balrampur on Wednesday bulldozed the alleged illegal construction on government land by Jalaluddin alias Chhangur Baba, the mastermind of a religious conversion racket recently nabbed by the UP ATS, official said.

Additional Superintendent of Police Vishal Pandey said a complaint was received in Madhyapur village that Chhangur Baba had grabbed government land. During a probe the allegations were found to be true.

Eight bulldozers are on the job to remove the encroachment on the government land by demolishing illegal structures, he said.

The action will continue till the land is cleared, the Additional SP added.

On Tuesday, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said preliminary investigations revealed Jalaluddin's activities are not only anti-social but also "anti-national".

"In the initial probe, it has come to light that the activities of the accused Jalaluddin are not only against society but also against the nation,” Adityanath said.

Asserting that there will be no leniency in matters related to law and order in the state, the chief minister stated, The properties of the accused and other criminals linked to his gang will be seized, and strict legal action will be taken against them.

On Saturday, the UP Anti-Terrorism Squad arrested Chhangur Baba, along with his aide.

Chhangur Baba and co-accused Neetu alias Nasreen are residents of Madhpur in Balrampur district.

A non-bailable warrant was issued against Chhangur Baba, while the police had declared a cash reward of Rs 50,000 for his arrest.

The case, registered at a police station in Gomtinagar, Lucknow, under various sections of the BNS and the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Religious Conversion Act, 2021, alleges that the accused acted in an organised manner to convert individuals from Hindu and non-Muslim communities to Islam.

"The poor, helpless labourers, weaker sections, and widowed women were lured with incentives, financial aid, promises of marriage, or forced through intimidation, in violation of established procedures for religious conversion by the accused," the police statement said.

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Earlier, two other accused -- Naveen alias Jamaluddin and Mehboob, who is Jalaluddin's son -- were arrested on April 8. Both hail from Balrampur and are currently lodged in the Lucknow District Jail.