While the Allahabad High Court in its order dated August 6, 2026, ordered the release of the two sisters, Anshu Bhatia alias Amina Bhatia and Diya alias Zoya Bhatia, from illegal detention of their father, Anil Kumar Bhatia, police proceedings continue against several persons accused of involvement in the alleged religious conversion of the two women.
This is because the Allahabad High Court had given its verdict based on the habeas corpus petition filed by the two sisters, demanding their release from the custody of their father against their wishes. The habeas corpus did not challenge the allegations of unlawful conversion against the two sisters nor those having been arrested and jailed in connection with the conversion of the two women.
The 50th paragraph of the judgment makes it very clear that the court, in the present habeas corpus petition, was dealing only with the detention of the two sisters, and not with the legality of the conversion.
“The legality of the conversion and the legality of their detention constitute two distinct and independent issues,” Justice Sandeep Jain clarified.
The judge said that “the former (legality of conversion) may be examined in appropriate proceedings before the competent forum, the latter(detention issue) falls squarely within the jurisdiction of this court while exercising its extraordinary writ jurisdiction in a petition for habeas corpus.”
The judge took this view based on the pleadings of the sister’s advocate Ali ibn Saif. Adv Ali forcefully submitted that the “two women, who are major, were lawfully deprived of their personal liberty and detained by their father in collusion with and connivance with the State, against their free will.” Adv Ali argued that “the right to choose one’s place of residence and the person with whom one desires to reside forms an inseparable component of the right to life and personal liberty guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution.”
As the court decided the matter pertaining to detention of the two sisters, not the issues pertaining to their conversion from Hinduism to Islam, the allegations pertaining to their conversion violating the procedures contemplated in the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2021, continue, and their cases are being heard in Agra District and Sessions Court as well as Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court.
According to police officials, 18 people were arrested in connection with the case under “Operation Asmita” that was launched to arrest people alleged to be involved in the conversion of the two sisters. However, the two women have denied that the arrested people have anything to do with their conversion. They told the High court that they converted on their own free will and for their spiritual solace and mental peace. Yet, the police is continuing the criminal cases against the accused and allege that it has an international dimension, with the chief kingpin having been based in Canada.
Of the 18 accused identified by the police, the Agra police have filed charge sheets against 14 accused before the court of Additional District Judge Jyotsna Singh.
The case is based on a complaint lodged by the sisters’ father, Anil Kumar Bhatia, at Sadar Police Station, Agra, on May 4, 2025. In his complaint, Bhatia stated that his daughters had been missing since March 24, 2025. He further alleged that his elder daughter, Anshu, had earlier left home in 2021 and was subsequently found in Jammu in the company of Saima alias Khushboo, whom he accused of influencing her for the purpose of marriage.Bhatia brought them back to Agra and confined them in his home and did not allow them to go outside. He also confiscated their mobile phones.
However, the sisters again managed to escape in March 2025. Bhatia alleged that the same woman had again enticed both daughters away from home.
Investigators found that the sisters had travelled to Kolkata through acquaintances. While there, they obtained a religious conversion certificate from the Qazi Welfare Committee. The certificate was reportedly issued on the basis of an affidavit submitted by the two sisters.
Their counsel, Advocate Ali ibn Saif, told this scribe that the sisters voluntarily embraced Islam and obtained the certificate only as a precautionary measure in case documentary proof was required for official purposes in the future. He maintained that Islam does not mandate any formal conversion certificate. According to Ali, Islam also does not require anybody to formally convert someone to Islam. Anyone can study Islam and accept it if he/she finds it suitable. So, it is purely one’s own decision.
Adv Ali said that as the two women are major, they are fully competent to make independent decision concerning every aspect of their lives, including their choice of religion, residence and association. He said that freedom of conscience and the right to freely profess, practise and propagate religion constituted fundamental rights guaranteed under Article 25 of the Constitution of India. Ali said that he submitted the same thing before the Allahabad High Court that resulted in the release of the two sisters from the confines of their parental home.
Following the missing persons complaint, Agra police traced the sisters to Kolkata and took them into custody. Advocate Ali alleged that during police custody, the sisters were pressured to state that they had been converted to Islam through coercion. However, they declined to make such a statement and stated that no coercion had been used in their conversion.
The sisters were later handed over to their father. According to Adv Ali, they subsequently managed to contact their acquaintances from their parental home, after which a habeas corpus petition was filed before the Allahabad High Court. On August 6, 2026, the High Court ordered their release.
Nationwide Raids and Arrests
After recovering the sisters from Kolkata, Agra police launched raids across West Bengal, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Delhi, Goa, and Uttar Pradesh, leading to the arrest of 18 persons accused of participating in an alleged religious conversion network.
Officials also claimed that investigators have identified links to Syed Dawood, described as the alleged mastermind of the purported conversion racket, who is believed to be hiding in Canada.
Among those arrested are SB Krishna alias Ayesha, Abdul Rahman, Rith Banik alias Mohammad Ibrahim, Ushma Khan, Shekhar alias Hasan Ali, Junaid Qureshi, Abu Talib, Mohammad Rahman Qureshi, Mohammad Ali alias Piyush Pawar, Manoj Kanojia alias Mustafa, Abdul Rahman alias Mahendra Pal Singh, his sons Abdul Rahim and Abdullah, Jatin Kapoor alias Jasim, Mohammad Hassan, Talmiz-ur-Rehman, and Parvez Akhtar.
Police sources alleged that Jatin Kapoor, an MBA graduate and web designer, was involved in persuading young people to convert. Mohammad Hassan allegedly prepared marriage-related documents, while Talmiz-ur-Rehman is said to be associated with business activities. Parvez Akhtar is reportedly a graduate of Delhi University.
Police said the 14 charge-sheeted accused have been booked under Sections 87, 111(3), 111(4), 61(2), and 152 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), along with Sections 3, 5(1), and 5(2) of the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act.
The matter remains under investigation, and the trial proceedings against the accused are continuing in the Agra district court.