Thanjavur student’s suicide: No evidence of forced conversion attempts, CBI tells SC
CBI says harassment by hostel warden led to suicide; 2022 case had triggered controversy after political leaders had alleged pressure to convert to Christianity
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has informed the Supreme Court that its investigation into the 2022 suicide of a Class 12 student in Thanjavur district found no evidence of attempts to force religious conversion.
Submitting its status report and chargesheet in the case relating to the death of Lavanya from Michaelpatti, the agency stated that allegations of attempts to convert her to Christianity at the missionary-run Sacred Heart Higher Secondary School could not be substantiated.
“Allegation pertaining to the attempt of conversion by the Convent sisters and teachers of Sacred Heart Higher Secondary School, Michaelpatti, could not be established,” the chargesheet, filed before the Chief Judicial Magistrate in Thiruchirappalli in December 2023, said.
The student’s death in 2022 had triggered a nationwide controversy after some political leaders alleged that she was pressured to convert to Christianity, a claim earlier rejected by the state police.
Harassment by hostel warden cited
According to the CBI, the student, who was staying in the school hostel, spoke in her video statement only about harassment allegedly faced from Sister Sagaya Mary, the hostel warden. The agency concluded that the warden had continuously subjected the girl to mental stress by making her handle hostel accounts work, affecting her studies.
Also Read: Madras HC orders CBI probe into Thanjavur girl’s suicide
Faced with sustained harassment and exploitation, the girl took the extreme step, the CBI said.
The agency has held Sister Sagaya Mary culpable for offences under Section 305 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 75 of the Juvenile Justice Act.
Political row and court intervention
The case had snowballed into a political flashpoint in Tamil Nadu, with leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) alleging a forced conversion bid. Then-BJP state president K Annamalai was among those who raised complaints.
The Madras High Court transferred the probe to the CBI in 2022, observing that the conversion angle was not improbable and faulting the State for ruling it out. Though the Tamil Nadu government challenged the order, the Supreme Court declined to stay the CBI investigation.
Also Read: Don't politicise girl's suicide, guilty will not escape, says TN Minister
In November 2025, the apex court directed the agency to place the chargesheet on record. Complying with the direction, the CBI filed the chargesheet along with an affidavit dated January 20, 2026.
A bench of Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice Satish Chandra Sharma is scheduled to consider the matter later today (February 18), effectively laying to rest long-standing allegations of forced religious conversion in the case.