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The arrest has unveiled a structured foreign network allegedly misusing humanitarian and spiritual covers to penetrate and influence sensitive tribal and rural belts
Watson is currently in the custody of Thane Police along with two local residents. Representational pic/PTI
The recent arrest of James Watson, a 58-year-old US national and son of a retired United States Navy official, in Bhiwandi, Thane district of Maharashtra, has triggered a high-level probe, with intelligence agencies viewing the case as a critical piece in a sophisticated “conversion toolkit” operating in India. CNN News18 has found that the arrest has unveiled a structured foreign network allegedly misusing humanitarian and spiritual covers to penetrate and influence sensitive tribal and rural belts.
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Watson, currently in the custody of Thane Police along with two local residents, was arrested for allegedly conducting unauthorised religious conversions, including baptisms, and making claims of “miracle healing” during a prayer gathering in Chimbipada village. His reluctance to cooperate—refusing to provide the password for his locked iPhone—and limited police remand have magnified agency concerns.
Soft Influence and Intelligence Gathering Concerns
Top intelligence sources indicate that the arrest raises serious worries about missionary fronts being used as tools for “soft influence and potential intelligence-gathering”. Watson’s reported military background particularly heightens the possibility of these networks being leveraged for “mapping sensitive social terrain in semi-urban India”, by exploiting vulnerable rural and tribal populations under the guise of social welfare, charity, education, and healthcare.
Agencies suspect a broader strategic objective: systematic conversions in select tribal belts that could significantly alter local political and voting patterns and impact district-level power and cultural dynamics, especially in border and communally sensitive areas.
A Structured, Foreign-Funded Network
The Bhiwandi case is being linked to a major, ongoing probe into a conversion “toolkit” that follows a template seen in earlier cases across Maharashtra, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, and Meghalaya, where Western nationals on tourist and business visas were involved.
Key findings of the central agencies point to:
Targeting Vulnerable Groups: Regular conversion data is emerging from marginalised communities, including Adivasis, Dalits, and economically vulnerable villagers.
Entry Points: These groups use education, healthcare, and “miracle healing” as primary entry points.
Foreign Funding and Hawala: Earlier rackets, such as the Chhangur Baba gang, have shown financing via hawala channels and foreign funding from the US, Canada, and Dubai. Disturbingly, this module was linked to PFI and SDPI units, with central agencies taking over the probe into over 500 conversions.
Digital Grooming: Recent rackets in Agra and Hardoi in 2025 indicated a move towards digital grooming via the dark web against money.
Visa Misuse: The groups are repeatedly misusing business, tourist, or volunteer visas, indicating a structured foreign network designed to maintain plausible deniability. Between 2018 and 2025, over 320 cases of foreign visa misuse for religious purposes were reported in India.
Punjab ‘Success Story’ and Worrying Trends
The intelligence decoding also noted a significant, successful trend in Punjab, where Christianity, particularly through Masih practices and baptism, is now one of the fastest-growing religions, marked by a recent surge in churches and pastors.
The focus is now on the full background connections and funding behind James Watson’s operation, as agencies work to fully decode a sophisticated, foreign-backed drive that uses religious conversion as a cover for deeper, strategic activities in India’s heartland.
About the Author
Group Editor, Investigations & Security Affairs, Network18
Group Editor, Investigations & Security Affairs, Network18
October 07, 2025, 19:26 IST
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