Pune Police Issue ‘Leave India’ Notices to Three US Nationals for Religious Preaching on Tourist Visas
Reported by Mubarak Ansari
Pune, 29th April 2026: Three American citizens have been served ‘Leave India’ notices by the Pune City Police for allegedly engaging in religious preaching and distributing religious pamphlets in the city, actions that strictly violate the conditions of their tourist visas. The foreign nationals have been directed to leave the country on or before May 10, 2026.
The incident came to light on Sunday morning, April 26, 2026, when the three tourists were found distributing religious literature near the Panchmukhi Maruti Temple in Shukrawar Peth, Pune.
The individuals have been identified as James Ritchie Hudson (65) from Pennsylvania, Frantz Thomas (53), and Garry Rosemond Jean (64). All three were visiting India on e-Tourist visas and were residing at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel in Pimpri, Pune.
According to police officials, a 26-year-old local driver filed a complaint after being approached by the trio. He stated that around 11:00 AM, the three foreign nationals handed him religious pamphlets printed in Marathi, Hindi, and English. The pamphlets were titled “Why is the world so divided?” (translated as “Jag Itke Vibhaglele Ka Aahe?” in Marathi).
The complainant alleged that the foreigners told him, “Yesu is Great, no other great than Lord Yesu,” while handing over the material. Upon reading the Marathi pamphlet, he found its contents to be asserting the superiority of Christianity while allegedly disparaging other faiths. Feeling that his religious sentiments were hurt by the unprovoked proselytization, he immediately alerted the local authorities.
Officers from the Khadak Police Station reached the spot and took the three American nationals to the station for questioning. Based on the complaint, the Khadak Police registered a Non-Cognizable (NC) offence against them under Section 302 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) 2023, which deals with uttering words with deliberate intent to wound the religious feelings of any person.
Following the initial police action, the matter was escalated to the Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRO) under the Pune Police’s Special Branch.
On Monday, April 27, Dr. Sandeep Bhajibhakare, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Branch-II), issued formal ‘Leave India’ notices to all three Americans. The notices explicitly stated that the individuals had violated the provisions of the law by “engaging in religious preaching and teaching work” while holding tourist visas.
“Such an act constitutes a contravention of the provisions of the Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025, and the rules and orders made thereunder,” the official notice read. The authorities warned that failure to comply with the directive to leave India by May 10, 2026, would render them liable for prosecution.
Indian immigration regulations strictly prohibit foreign nationals arriving on tourist visas from participating in missionary work, religious preaching, or any proselytization activities.
