Biswa Kalyan Purkayastha
Silchar: The Assam Police arrested two American nationals in Assam’s Sonitpur district on Saturday morning for allegedly propagating Christianity, officials privy to the matter said.
Police said they were arrested following complaints by local residents of the Tezpur area of the district.
Sonitpur Superintendent of Police (SP) Susanta Biswa Sarma said the two were fined $500 for their alleged attempt to propagate Christianity without proper authorization.
“They were on tourist visas and as per the provisions, they cannot carry out religious activities or propagate religious ideologies. Therefore, we called them to the police station and imposed fines of $500 each,” said SP Sarma.
The police, however, did not reveal their names. No case has been registered against them, police said.
In October 2022, seven German nationals and three Swedish nationals were arrested from Golaghat and Dibrugarh districts of Assam for allegedly flouting visa norms by engaging in missionary activities.
The police took them to Guwahati and then deported them back to their country.
Last year, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma called on religious communities to refrain from converting Hindus in the name of education and health services.
Hindu organizations have alleged that Christian missionaries from different countries are visiting the northeastern states as tourists and spreading Christianity by flouting visa norms.
