MUMBAI, India – Two Catholic nuns were detained over allegations of human trafficking at a train station in India.

Government Railway Police (GRP) detained two nuns, Sister Preeti Mary and Sister Vandana Francis of the Green Garden Sisters, at the Durg Railway Station in Durg, a town in the state of Chhattisgarh on July 25.

The two nuns were reportedly accompanying three girls and an adult tribal boy from Narayanpur, in the Diocese of Jagdalpur, Chhattisgarh, allegedly enroute to Agra in the state of Uttar Pradesh.

Chhattisgarh has a population of around 30 million people and is over 93 percent Hindu. Less than 2 percent of the people are Christian.

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The state is ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has also ruled the national government since 2014. The party has strong links to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), a militant Hindu nationalist organization. Religious minorities have complained of increased harassment since the party took power on a Hindu-first platform.

Incidents of harassment against Christians and other religious minorities have increased across India, with various Christians being detained or arrested for “attempted conversion,” and places of worship being vandalized.

The three girls are aged between 19 and 22 and had reportedly travelled to Durg with the consent of their parents to work at a hospital managed by Catholic sisters. However, they were stopped at the station by the Train Ticket Examiner (TTE) for not possessing platform tickets. During questioning, the girls stated that they were going to work with the nuns.

The TTE then informed local members of Bajrang Dal, who arrived at the scene and began accusing the nuns of attempting to convert the girls.

Bajrang Dal is a Hindu militant organisation that forms the youth wing of the Vishva Hindu Parishad.

The right-wing group members began demanding immediate action by the government in Chhattisgarh.

The parents of the girls had previously provided written consent along with copies of cards clearly stating their approval for their daughters to take up employment with the sisters. The men alleged that this was a case of “forcible conversion” even though the young women said they were already Christians. They and the nuns were all forced to deboard the train and the police took them to the police station for questioning.

The three young women are currently under the care of the Women Welfare Committee in Durg.

“I feel sorry that these types of incidents are on the rise,” said Cardinal Oswald Gracias.

“Our mission is being misunderstood. I feel sympathy for the nuns and am confident that they were not doing anything unlawful,” he told Crux.

“They should not be harassed. There are proper ways of interrogation and procedures for investigation, they should not be harassed. This brings a very bad name for our country. We are a law-abiding country, and these incidents show us in poor light,” Gracias said.

The cardinal was a former Archbishop of Agra before becoming Archbishop of Bombay. He is now retired.

“I know these Nuns from Agra, and they are doing yeoman service for the society. I am sure that their intentions were very good. We don’t know what has been communicated,” he said.

“It is serious, this was an aggression on women … our women religious were heckled, disrespected and harassed, this is not the way to treat women. You do not treat women in this manner. Such incidents tarnish the image of the nation,” Gracias told Crux.