From peddling gemstones on a bicycle to emerging as the alleged mastermind of a multi-crore illegal religious conversion racket, the rise of Jalaluddin Shah alias ‘Chhangur’ Baba is now under the scanner of both the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
Chhangur Baba, accused of being the 'mastermind' of a religious conversion racket, was arrested by the Uttar Pradesh ATS on Saturday. The UP ATS on Wednesday secured a week-long custody of Jalaluddin alias Chhangur Baba and his associate Neetu alias Nasreen.
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They are accused of acting in an organised manner to convert individuals from Hindu and non-Muslim communities to Islam.
How Chhangur Baba rose
Once a wandering astrologer in rural Uttar Pradesh, Chhangur Baba's transformation began after his stints in Mumbai and Saudi Arabia, where he is believed to have forged a powerful network, as reported by Hindustan Times earlier.
Over the past decade, he recast himself as 'Peer Baba' or Hazrat Jalaluddin, a Sufi-style preacher who operated out of an ashram near the shrine of Chandaulia Baba in Balrampur, close to the India-Nepal border.
{{/usCountry}}Over the past decade, he recast himself as 'Peer Baba' or Hazrat Jalaluddin, a Sufi-style preacher who operated out of an ashram near the shrine of Chandaulia Baba in Balrampur, close to the India-Nepal border.
{{/usCountry}}According to senior police officials, Chhangur Baba and his associates allegedly built a sprawling property empire worth over ₹300 crore, spread across Balrampur, adjoining UP districts, and Maharashtra's Pune. The accused reportedly owned luxury vehicles, bungalows, and over three dozen properties, many registered under the names of associates or NGOs.
"Chhangur Baba and his associates had travelled to different Islamic countries over 50 times in the past few years," a senior police official said.
The senior police official added that foreign funding is suspected to be behind the ₹106 crore in suspicious transactions detected in over a dozen bank accounts linked to NGOs floated by the accused.
“Moreover, the kingpin has formed as many as 40 different organisations and opened as many bank accounts in their names. The UP ATS investigation revealed the transactions of over ₹100 crore from these bank accounts in the past few years and they suspect foreign funding behind all these transactions,” a senior police official privy to the investigation told Hindustan Times.
NGOs funneled crores
On July 5, Chhangur Baba and Nasreen alias Neetu Naveen Rohra were arrested in a case of alleged forced religious conversions, with multiple charges under the Indian Penal Code and the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2021. Nasreen's husband Jamaluddin alias Naveen Rohra and Jalaluddin's son Mehboob were arrested in April in connection with the same case. The ATS is still pursuing on the hunt for 14 more co-accused.
The above-mentioned NGOs, the ATS says, were a front to funnel crores, and the ED has now launched a money laundering probe under PMLA.
One of the key revelations includes a ₹16 crore land deal in Maharashtra's Pune, allegedly involving a court clerk from Uttar Pradesh's Utraula and his wife, with a profit-sharing clause.
"The land deal's cost was calculated as per the existing circle rate at the time of purchase but its actual market value would be over ₹200 crore at present," the officer added. Both the clerk and his wife are now named accused.
Illegal empire's nerve centre
The illegal empire's nerve center was a three-bigha property in Madhpur village under Uttaraula tehsil in UP's Balrampur, equipped with CCTV surveillance and accommodations for over 50 people. The structure was demolished for being built on government (gram sabha) land.
It was registered in the name of Nasreen, who, along with her husband, was allegedly brainwashed by Baba during his Mumbai days and later brought to Balrampur, where they adopted Islamic identities.
The modus operandi, according to police, involved offering financial incentives to the poor and threatening them with false cases to force conversions. The racket also allegedly employed "love jihad" tactics, with documented instances like that of Lucknow's Gunja Gupta, who was lured by an associate named Abu Ansari (posing as "Amit"), and later converted and renamed Aleena Ansari.
The ATS uncovered that the gang allegedly charged ₹15-16 lakh for converting Brahmin, Sardar, or Kshatriya girls, ₹10-12 lakh for OBCs, and ₹8-10 lakh for other castes.
The probe was triggered after intelligence inputs flagged unusual financial activity and suspicious behavior in Madhpur village. Officials said the case is still developing, unfolding and is expected to reveal further links, properties, and foreign connections.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) wrote to the Uttar Pradesh ATS, state government authorities and certain banks on Thursday to ascertain the details of assets, accounts and finances of Chhangur Baba, news agency PTI reported, citing official sources.