Authorities in India’s central state of Madhya Pradesh have ordered the attachment of prime land belonging to a nearly 140-year-old Protestant Church–run college, alleging that the property was being misused for commercial purposes.
The 1.702 hectares (about 4.2 acres) of land in Indore city owned by Indore Christian College is estimated to be worth about 4 billion rupees (US$43.65 million).
According to the Indore district administration, the land was gifted in 1887 by the erstwhile Holkar dynasty to a Canadian Mission to establish a hospital and a school, primarily for women.
The college was set up the same year and later grew into a well-known institution of higher education.
An order issued by District Collector Shivam Verma on Jan. 23, and reported by The Times of India on Jan. 25, said the original mission for which the land was granted no longer existed.
It said no women’s hospital was currently operating on the site and that the college was being run by a different entity that charged fees, which the administration said amounted to a deviation from the original purpose of the land grant.
“We have challenged the order in the Madhya Pradesh High Court,” Amit David, principal of the college, told UCA News on Jan. 27.
He said the land was not leased but gifted, though he declined to provide further details, saying the matter was under consideration by the Indore bench of the state’s top court.
A Church official, who requested anonymity, said the college management had sought government permission to construct commercial shops on a portion of the land that had remained unused for decades, aiming to generate revenue to support the institution.
“However, that application was instead used to target Church property,” he said,
The order reportedly directed officials to register the land in the name of the state government within three days. However, the process was delayed because of the weekend and a national holiday on Jan. 26, India’s Republic Day.
A district official said a condition in the original land grant allowed the government to reclaim the property if there was any deviation from its intended use.
College authorities are concerned about the future of about 2,300 students enrolled in 17 undergraduate and graduate programs, many of whom are preparing for annual examinations.
“If the government forcibly takes over the land on which the college stands, we do not know what will happen to the students,” the Church official said.
Madhya Pradesh is ruled by the pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and Hindu nationalist groups have frequently accused Christian institutions of forcibly or fraudulently converting people, allegations Church leaders deny.
The state is among 12 in India with strict anti-conversion laws that criminalize religious conversion through coercion, inducement or fraud, with penalties including prison terms and fines.
Christians make up about 0.27 percent of Madhya Pradesh’s more than 72 million people, while Hindus account for about 80 percent of the population.