Bihar: Woman branded as witch, assaulted by family members for refusing to convert to Christianity and praying to Hindu deities
In a chilling case of religious coercion and violence, a woman from Baliyadih village under Jhajha block in Bihar’s Jamui district has alleged that she was brutally beaten and humiliated by her in-laws for refusing to convert to Christianity.
The victim, Sonali Devi, filed a formal complaint with the Superintendent of Police on Monday, accompanied by her husband, Sahdev Das. She recounted the horrifying events of May 25, when her brothers-in-law, Kanhaiya Das and Panchu Das, allegedly attacked her with sticks and rods, calling her a “dayan” (witch) and issuing death threats.
Sonali, who resides alone in a house built on her share of ancestral land while her husband works in Kolkata, says she has been under pressure from her in-laws—father-in-law Tarni Das, mother-in-law Suruti Devi, and brother-in-law Kanhaiya Das—to convert to Christianity. According to her, these family members had embraced the Christian faith privately but continue to publicly identify as Hindus, making them “crypto converts.” They continue to retain their Hindu identity perhaps to access government welfare schemes and caste-based reservation benefits.
Coercion cloaked in superstition
In her testimony, Sonali detailed how her refusal to convert led to repeated episodes of abuse. She alleged that her in-laws warned her she would be denied any claim to family property unless she converted. “They use religion as a weapon,” she said. “Because I choose to remain Hindu, they call me a witch and beat me.”
The use of superstition in such coercion is especially concerning. Sonali was reportedly forced to undergo a humiliating ritual where her hair was cut by a local witch doctor, or “ojha,” at the behest of her in-laws. She was branded a witch—an age-old tactic often used in rural India to shame and silence women, now being cynically employed in a dispute driven by both land and religion.
Crypto conversion: A disturbing trend
The case exposes a growing but under-discussed phenomenon of “crypto conversion,” where individuals convert to another religion but hide their new faith to continue receiving Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe benefits reserved for Hindus. Sonali’s in-laws, while practicing Christianity, have not legally declared their conversion—allowing them to retain access to government subsidies, job reservations, and land rights.
Crypto converts represent a dangerous grey zone. They claim the privileges of Hindu identity while violating its tenets and pressuring others to follow suit. It’s a form of ideological fraud with real human victims.
Police inaction
Sonali had previously filed two complaints with the Jhajha police station, but no meaningful action was taken. A local panchayat’s attempt at resolution also failed. Jhajha Station House Officer Sanjay Singh said the case seems linked to a property dispute, though he did not dismiss the religious angle entirely.
Meanwhile, Sonali continues to face mental and emotional abuse. She claims her in-laws regularly insult her for praying to Hindu deities and prohibit her from observing religious rituals. “They have converted in spirit, but wear the mask of Hinduism only for benefits,” she said.
A growing menace with wider implications
This is more than a family feud—it’s a reflection of how religious conversions, land disputes, and institutional loopholes can combine to inflict suffering on vulnerable individuals. Women’s rights advocates have warned that unless authorities take serious cognizance of such cases, forced conversions could become an instrument for both economic exploitation and ideological coercion.
Journalist Swati Goel Sharma pointed out that such coercive attempts by family members to convert cannot be dismissed as just “domestic dispute” but it is a conversion terror sowed by soul harvesters that destroy families and gravely chip away at their internal dynamics.
Sonali’s case is a test—not only of legal justice but of the state’s commitment to protecting freedom of religion and individual dignity. As she awaits justice, her fight is emblematic of a broader struggle unfolding silently in many corners of India.
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