Media Release

Mangaluru, Jul 30: The Catholic Sabha Mangalore Pradesh has expressed deep shock over the arrest of two Malayali Catholic nuns—Sister Vandana Francis from Thalassery and Sister Preethi Mary from Angamaly—members of the Sisters of Mary Immaculate of Assisi congregation. The nuns were reportedly detained by authorities in Narayanpur district, Chhattisgarh, while they were accompanying three women aged between 18 and 19 years, along with a young man.

They have been charged under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Chhattisgarh Freedom of Religion Act, 1968, on allegations of human trafficking and forced religious conversion, which the Catholic Sabha termed as both baseless and disturbing.

According to reports, the women were being accompanied for domestic work-related purposes. Raising objections and making accusations of religious conversion in such a context is both unjust and condemnable, the Sabha stated.

In a press release, Santosh D’Souza, president of the Catholic Sabha Mangalore Pradesh Central committee, along with other office-bearers, strongly demanded the immediate release of the arrested nuns and called for strict legal action against those responsible for their wrongful detention.