Ruthless and regular persecution of Gujarat's Christians and Muslims

Ahmedabad (AsiaNews) – The government of Gujarat “has conveniently forgotten that Article 25 of the Constitutions guarantees freedom of worship, and it does everything in its power to continue, and to justify, ruthless persecution against Christians and Muslims living in the state”. With these words, Fr Cedric Prakash – director of Prashant, a Jesuit-run centre for human rights, justice and peace – concluded an article he wrote about the “Carnage of Gujarat”: the massacre perpetrated three years ago by “unknown people” against the Muslim community.

Fr Prakash examines the anti-conversion law currently in force that was approved by the nationalist Hindu party, and poses a series of questions to which “the government simply gives no reply”. The Jesuit is well known for his work for human rights: the Indian president awarded him with the Kabir Puraskar prize “for his commitment to promote communal peace and harmony”.

We reproduce the article in full below:

The BJP government [Bharatiya Janata Party, India’s largest political party with nationalist, fundamentalist leanings] in Gujarat rode to a massive two-thirds majority victory in the Assembly Elections of December 2002. This was mainly due to a meticulously organized pogrom on the Muslim minority of the State which is infamously called the “Gujarat Carnage of 2002”.

There was another aspect in their Election Manifesto which they propagated far and wide prior to the elections, namely that an anti-Conversion Law would be in place after they came to power. This promise they did keep when on March 26 2003, three years ago, they rode rough-shod over a feeble opposition and unanimously passed “The Gujarat Freedom of Religion Act”.

Very ironically, that same day, Haren Pandya, a former Home Minister of Gujarat and a vociferous opponent of Narendra Modi, a nationalist leader, was gunned down in the heart of the city in broad daylight. The truth of his assassination has still not yet emerged but if one listens to Vitthalbhai Pandya, his father, then one will easily be convinced that the murderers of his son are not the “Muslim terrorists” who are being accused.

Very strangely, although the Act was passed, until today, the Gujarat Government has not been able to frame the rules needed to govern the implementation of the Act. In its essence, the Act “provides for freedom of religion by prohibition of conversion from one religion to another by use of force or allurement or by fraudulent means”.

The key clauses of the Act are :

1. Anyone wanting to convert or wanting to convert someone else from one religion to another needs prior permission from the District Magistrate.

2. Whoever contravenes this Act will be punished for a period extending up to three years and also liable to a fine which may extend to 50,000 rupees

3. However, if the “guilty” happens to be a minor or woman or a tribal or an outcast, the imprisonment extends up to four years and the fine extends up to 100,000 rupees.

Once this Act was passed, the government was not able to answer simple questions. Are there any instances of forced conversion in Gujarat? Has anyone complained? What does allurement mean? If for example, a person is promised “a more peaceful life” or a technique in the “art of living”, in the acceptance of another religion or way of life, does that amount to allurement? And what happens if one would like to embrace Hinduism, Sikhism, Jainism or even Buddhism? Does one need to have permission for that conversion?

Then there are certain draconian aspects of the law: Who is the District Magistrate to sit on judgment on matters related to faith and conscience? How does one decide if permission should be given or not? What happens if one decides to become an agnostic, an atheist? Does that amount to changing one’s religion? Why should there be more severe punishment for a women, dalit, adivasi or minor? Is it because these groups are lesser than the “brahminized males” who dominate our society?

On Christmas Day 2005, in a widely publicized debate on television, the Home Minister of Gujarat, Amit Shah was challenged as to why the rules which are necessary for implementing this law were not being framed. He had absolutely no answer.

Very obviously, the level of rhetoric and the ferocity of the demands were heightened at the Shabri Kumbh Mela [festival of Hindu purification] from 11 to 13 February 2006. At this time, anti-Christian venom and hate were spewed. One of the resolutions of this Mela was to ensure a national law to ban conversions. A couple of weeks later, in a much publicized meeting of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh [RSS, paramilitary formation of extremist Hindus, considered to be the armed wing of the BJP] in Orissa, a similar resolution was adopted.

The question is: why wasn’t such a law approved when the nationalists were in power? Why do they call on the current national government to pass it?

Whilst it is true that the law, as it is, is toothless, it is also a fact that it is like a Damocles’ sword, with some officials misusing it to threaten and intimidate tribals and dalits.

Mrs Jayalalitha in Tamil Nadu brought in a similar but less draconian legislation sometime ago, but she had to eat humble pie because of its impact, so very conveniently and strategically, she withdrew it. The Gujarat government is in a similar quandary: having passed the legislation, they are just afraid to frame the rules for this law. The fact is that when they do so, they know that it will be challenged. It is a political trap they have set for themselves.

Another question that needs to be asked is: “Is the government of Gujarat really afraid that hundreds and thousands of people will actually embrace Christianity?” If this is so, why don’t they ask themselves why people want to convert to another faith?”

In the meantime, the government continues to harass and intimidate Christians, Muslims and other minorities with a terrifying regularity. They are doing all in their power in order to justify this law and persecution. The government has conveniently forgotten that Article 25 of the Constitutions guarantees every single citizen, the freedom to practice, preach and propagate the religion of his/her choice.

26 March 2003 was indeed a bloody day in the history of Gujarat: civil society must speak out for justice, freedom and truth in order to guarantee that such days will never be repeated. And, we need to know…..Is the Gujarat government afraid of something?

Fishing in the troubled waters

Fishing in the troubled Waters: Advani's (W)rath Yatra For National (Dis)integration

By V.B. Rawat (March 11, 2006)

Lal Krishna Advani is back to what he has been an 'expert' for the past 15 years. After the bomb blasts at the Sankat Mochan temple in Varanasi, he hurriedly organized a press meet and informed the hungry journalists that he along with Rajnath Singh would embark on 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' (India integration Yatra) against the policies of the United Progressive Alliance government which have resulted in the blast at Varanasi. Advani says that the blasts were the outcome of 'minorityism' being shamelessly played by the UPA government.

While people of Uttar-Pradesh in general and Varanasi in particular should be complimented for a strong response to the antinational forces who tried to dismantle the communal harmony in the temple town, the Hindutva party was unable to understand the need of the people. Its TV face Prakash Javadekar informed that in democracy every one has a right to express their feelings. Problem with Javadekar is that they would not like this right to be given to Muslims.

However, it would be unfair to Advani if the issue of communalization has not been addressed properly. After the demolition of Babari Masjid, things were coming back to normalcy when the issue of Cartoon dominated the debates in India. There are few questions related to this. These questions are bigger than the religion and need introspection from all of us.

Violent Reactions to Dissent

Our feelings are being 'hurt' every now and then. When the Cartoon Controversy was in full swing, another TV channel was showing how 'Hindu' Gods and goddesses were being denigrated in Europe. Last year Christians also protested against film 'sin' which shows illegitimate relationship between a pastor and young girl who visit the church too often. The Sikhs blasted one play right in London for her blasphemy of their religion. Hence it is not just Muslims who are sensitive to 'criticism' but we all who have closed our windows and want to believe what we believe and feel right. The biggest casualty in this is truth.

Recently several Dalit right activists have been put behind bar when some of them garlanded the idol of Lord Rama with shoes. They burnt the Manu Smriti and Vedas for their alleged contempt towards the Dalits. The Shiv Sena 's goons attacked Zee TVs' office for allegedly offensive play against its Supreme high command Bala Saheb Thackerey. In Uttar-Pradesh the sensibilities of Bahujan Samaj Party were hurt when CNN-IBN report exposed the 'financial' deals of its Goddess Mayawati. Ambedkarites are unhappy with alleged publication of his letters with a British woman who helped him. The Gandhian's do not feel comfortable with ' Mee Naturam Godse Boltai'.

This culture of deification of leaders in the name of identity is a dangerous phenomenon in our part of the world. Whatever we may claim as 'secular' values for our democracy, 'secularism' and 'democracy' are not part of our social system. We live in a sham political democracy, which begin with politicians and end up with them. They use identity as a tool to strengthen their political bargain and purchase unquestioning loyalty from their 'caste' and 'religious' fellows. In other words, it is 'crony' and 'feudal' democracy as there is no space for the marginalized and 'minorities' in such a democracy. The erstwhile Rajas and Mahrajas, religious gurus, big land mafias, criminals, accused, all, have found best shelter in democracy. Any effort to question them meet with threat of dire consequences.

We pretend that the elections are being contested in the name of development. The fact is a big no. It is the identity politics that dominate our elections. Identities thrive not on success but on the fear. The only success that identities can do is to mobilize people and collect fund from them. The fear of the opposite identity subjugating the other one is exploited very well.

An atmosphere of fear is therefore necessary to flourish the identity politics. Once you instill fear by creating an artificial enemy for your community, none of the community poor are going to ask any further question. In fact, he or she would handsomely contribute for strengthening his community work. Ironically, there are no such initiatives for education, hospitals, social work where people can contribute at their own. They still wait for a messiah to come and provide support to them. But in the name of identity, people are ready to 'strengthen' their leaders by 'contributing' handsomely. The collection by the religious organization is matter of research for every one of us. What could be better than using caste and religion to spread their hateful ideology?

Living for Religion

After all, we are told, life is for religion, for our holy books, holy gods and goddess and not vice versa. All of them are unquestionable. The only question we ask is about other faith. Hindus have pernicious caste system say both Muslims and Christians. How can they tackle so many gods and goddesses? The upper caste middle class Hindus would often pretend to be more 'modern' by suggesting Muslim women are worst hit. 'Muslims are fanatic', they would often say. Muslim says George Bush and Christian world are killing the Muslims. They must apologize for attack on Iraq. True, Japan must apologize from Korea, Britain from India, Muslims from Hindus for they ruled over 400 years in India. The Upper caste Hindus should apologize from the Dalits. Men should ask mercy from women and so on. Communist should apologize from freethinkers in China, Soviet Union, Cuba and Venezuela. List is long and the only thing is to change ourself. Bring ourself out of these identities, which makes us doubtful about any one who is not conformity with us.

It is also important to understand that minority identity is easily targeted as 'communal' while majority identity become 'national'. Therefore, we can catch an Abu Salem and put an Interpol warrant against Dawood Ibrahim while our police can do nothing against Bal Thackrey and Lal Krishna Advani. Is not it shameful that the man headed the Ministry who had charge sheeted him on the Ayodhya demolition case. Remember, this man preaches us morality in public life. His 'devotees', mainly the journalists and Internet breed of Non Reliable Indians (NRIs) are ready to catch his words.

Tragically, it is not just Muslims who thrive on the international identity first and national identity later as Vir Sanghvi might make us feel. The Christians do the same. Their mission work irrespective of countries is basically to serve their religion first and national identity later, otherwise, why would mother Teresa come to India and serve the 'poor'.

But are Hindus so naïve not to do this identity business. Why should India open its border with Nepal and not with other countries? Why do we not bother that a porous border with Nepal could be equally dangerous such as with Bangladesh? But Nepal is not on the radar of Hindutva because its feudal Maharaja is serving the cause of Hindutva better than others hence none of Hindutva gangs would talk about feudlocracy rampant in Nepal.

It is not for nothing that Mr Advani during his tenure as home minister asked for dual citizenship. One need not to wonder why the Sangh Parivar and its hate mongering offshoots have the largest supporter groups in United States and United Kingdom. One wonders why they could not learn a lesson or two about diversity and democracy living in free societies.

Identity of 'enemy'

Hence when the Muslim protests in India against George Bush and the so-called Marxists joins it, it makes a lot of soul searching for us. It is easier for our leftist friend to condemn United States and United Kingdom who are much better and independent societies than us. But like Advani, they also need an enemy. Nobody, justify Bush and Blair for their deeds. Their people are against them and they will bite dust next time but how can we get rid of those 'nationalists' who are sitting overhead. The Muslim do not protest against the killing by their co-brotherns in Kashmir or when Saddam gassed the Kurds. The Hindus do not protest when the Dalits are hacked to death in the villages. The Christian right wing is happy with George Bush for his 'family' philosophy.

We all need an enemy in the identity business. Mulayam need a Yaqub Quraishi to incite Muslims for alleged blasphemous act of a cartoonist who 'painted' a picture of prophet. Interestingly nobody know how he looked like hence any drawing in the name of prophet are nothing but idiotic. In fact any drawing in the name of any Gods and Goddess are just by the artificial imagination of our mind. But we easily get hurt. Yaqub Quraishi was ready to give Rs 51 crore to kill the cartoonist. I would suggest him to start a 'Sarva Siksha Abhiyan' for Muslim girls with this money. That would serve him votes and name also. Once Yaqub suggested the killing, the Hindu leaders were ready to offer Rs 101 crore on the head of painter M F Hussein for allegedly insulting Hindu Goddesses.

It is ironical that our democratic values are guided by religious values and not by the human rights values, international code of justices and various reform movements, which challenged the religious hegemony. Any challenge to religion and its demagogues are met with strong protests.

It is not that the 'devotees' are against what is happening or what is being written against our Gods. People and institutions are targeted even if we keep quiet or we do not write or celebrate the birthday of certain particular leader or we do not moan the death anniversary of some. Sambhaji Brigade in Maharastra attacked the office of Marathi Daily, Lok Satta as the daily has not brought any special supplement on the day of Shivaji Jayanti.

When movement for Uttarakhand was gaining ground in the hills in 1994, Mulayam Singh Yadav, the then chief minister asked his supporters to burn the copies of two Hindi dailies named Amar Ujala and Dainik Jagaran. He alleged that these newspapers were inciting the people. The 'devotees' of Mulayam then followed the instructions and hit the vehicle carrying these newspapers.

Advani's Yatra therefore would not bring any change in the otherwise disgruntled Hindutva. The people of this country know it well that one 'enemy' created by either Muslims or Hindutva would not work in longer run. The democracy has taught the Muslim masses to ask more questions from their leaders. One must not forget that the benefit of Muslim identity politics in India has been usurped by the upper caste Hindus both the way. On the one hand it has helped consolidate the RSS, Hindutva and other such organization, the great beneficiaries the other side were Mulayam Singh Yadav or Mayawati.

It is not surprising that Gandhi used the same Muslim identity card to debunk Jinnah's claim to lead Muslim masses in India. Gandhi needed Mullahs to lead Muslims while Jinnah wanted a secular nationalist approach. Today, the same practice is being followed by Advani for Hindus and Mulayam for Muslims in the name of secularism.

Hunger-Poverty biggest Enemy

But then much water has flown in Sarayu and Ganga after the Babari Masjid and Shahbano case. Uttar-Pradesh is in the grip of micro identities and Advani is trying to kill those micro identities by projecting one big Hindu identity. One need to understand is that Advani in his Hindu identity is a Sindhi who do not have any vote bank. His other friends are upper caste Banias and a few Thakurs. BJP's Hindutva thesis revolve around these 'minority' castes added with a few of those 'minorities' who migrated from Pakistan . BJP in the grand Hindu scheme of things represent a tiny of minority upper castes and even those upper castes have now started drifting away from it.

In final analysis communalism is an offshoot of identity politics. Those who gain from caste politics opt for caste identities and those who have everything to lose from caste identities opt for a bigger 'nationalist' identity. There is no individual identity in this country. Religious and caste identities are the biggest challenge to democracy and human rights. India today needs a secular space for its politics and national life. This secular space mean that the state has to keep away from the religiosity and that any dissent on religion should be taken in a democratic spirit. It is too much to die for 400 years old mosque or so-called birthplace of a Lord which has no historic value. Thousands of people have already died in the name of pigs and cows. We need an India that takes care of its have nots, the Dalits and tribals. We need Indian who can feel the pain and agony of its women who suffers in the hate campaign and communal violence. We need Indians who feel ashamed of continuous hunger deaths. Yes, India need community of youngsters who are ready to come 'Swadesh' to fight against hunger, poverty and illiteracy.

Fight against violence, terror and hate go hand in hand. You cannot fight terrorism with a sectarian mindset. Off late, these 'protests' and 'Yatras' have become political tool for revival of 'dead' horses. We have seen such protests and marches against 'enemy'. Unlike the left, the 'enemy' for Advani lives around us. He hates them because their single-minded obsession failed his mission PM. It is time for all of us to heed the prophetic words of Dr Ambedkar when he said ' Hindu Rastra would be the biggest calamity for India.' I can say with conviction that not just Hindu Rastra but any kind of theocratic state would be dangerous for the health of our national life. Let free spirit prevail in India. Narrow parochial Hindtuvavadis cannot fight against the feudal Islamic Jehadis. We need proud secular Indian who can stand against the fanatics who want to keep people subjugated in the name of communal and caste identities. Let us throw these hate mongering identities into the dustbins of history.

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Massive Anti-Christian Poster Campaign in Dangs, India

(February 23, 2006) - The Washington-DC based human rights group, International Christian Concern (ICC) www.persecution.org has received additional information on the recent Hindu festival (Shabari Kumbh) in the state of Gujarat. Hosted by the radical Hindu group Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (National Volunteer Corps or RSS), the festival included a massive anti-conversion poster campaign, in addition to other festival activities, at Dangs in India’s western state of Gujarat from February 11 to 13.

The festival, organized in the remote, tribal-dominant district, was an attempt to “reconvert” tribal Christians to Hinduism by making them aware of the “Christian conspiracy of conversions.” Although no direct attempt of re-conversion was reported during the festival, the RSS left no stone unturned in preparing the ground for re-conversions in the future.

The RSS displayed at least two dozen anti-conversion posters in an exhibition titled ‘The New Vision for India.’ The posters were made by the neighboring state chapter of an affiliate of the RSS, and were sponsored by a donor situated in Mumbai, the state capital.

The posters mainly carried excerpts of newsletters of Christian missions in India and abroad, especially the West. To change the context of the extracts, headings were given on the top of the posters and statements of warning at the bottom.

A board installed at the gate of the exhibition area said, “Conversions must be stopped.”

Accused of Sponsoring Terrorist Groups in Northeast India

There was a series of five posters linking the Church with terrorist and separatist groups in northeast India.

Titled, “Church-sponsored terrorist groups in Northeast India,” this poster [at left] carried a list of 17 terrorist organizations that allegedly had close links with the church.

The statement in the footer of the poster read, “Terrorism is the true face of Christianity.”

Another poster [at right], titled, “Black shadow of the Cross on the Northeast,” stated that one of the insurgent groups in Northeast India, which has offices in New York and Geneva, had “Nagaland for Christ” written on its letterhead. “The Church funds this organization and China supplies the arms,” it claimed.

It also said that the separatist group National Liberation Front of Tripura, which has close links with the Pakistan’s ISI and Bangladesh’s Directorate General of Field Intelligence, had declared that it would make Tripura a Christian state.

The footer of this poster also read, “Terrorism is the true face of Christianity.”

Accusation of Conversion in the Garb of Social Service

In another series of seven posters, all titled, “Anything for conversions,” Christian missionaries were accused of converting Hindus using the guise of social service.

One poster [at left] stated, “A ‘miracle box’ is kept in many churches in the northeast. People are asked to put in slips carrying their prayer requests, be it freedom from debt or money for house, education, and daily expenses. After a few weeks, a ‘miracle’ takes place. The people get what they had asked for and they convert to Christianity.”

“People are asked to pray in the name of their gods while they are given colorful water, and not medicine, to drink. After a while, real medicine is given and, this time, the prayer is done in the name of Christ. When a person is healed thinking Christ has healed him, he converts to Christianity.”

The line in the footer read, “Christianity is based on superstitions.”

Another poster [at right] claimed that Christians’ involvement in education was meant for conversions. “In 1884, Lord Mochalo used money power to bring down traditional schools and started new schools where the Sanskrit language was taught. On October 12, 1836, he wrote a letter to his father saying, ‘If the education continues at this pace, not even a single Hindu will remain in Bengal; all will convert to Christianity. Those who do remain Hindus will be Hindus merely for name’s sake. They will no longer believe in Hindu scriptures. Thus we will achieve our objective without interfering in Hinduism and without violating their freedom of religion,” it said.

The bottom line stated, “Education in a missionary school is dangerous.”

Likewise, one poster [not shown] sought to associate Christians’ involvement in health services as an attempt to convert Hindus. It quoted members of one International Christian Hospitals as saying, “The number of people coming to hospitals is more than the number of people going to churches. Therefore, hospitals can be used for evangelization.” It also quoted a publication (February 21 to 27, 1983) of the Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, as saying, “People are more interested in issues related to life, death and salvation in hospitals. While Christians cannot preach in many villages of India, doors for evangelism open when you take health services with you.”

The footer declared, “Christian compassion, heights of hypocrisy.”

Views of Great Men of India on Conversion and Re-conversion

Further, three posters on display quoted three great men of India stating their view on Christian conversion and re-conversion of converts to Hinduism.

One poster [at left] carrying quotes of Hindu philosopher, Swami Vivekananda, said, “Even if the whole nation gets together to throw away the dirt into Western nations, they would only reduce it by little given the amount of dirt thrown into the ocean of Hindus. You (Westerners) talk big, but show us just one place where you have brought Christianity without using sword. I know some of our ancestors were converted to Christianity, but they did it because they would have to face the sword otherwise. You talk a lot about peace, but still behave like Muslims.”

“On being asked by a journalist in April 1899 if converts should be reconverted, Vivekananda replied, ‘Definitely, otherwise our population will continue to decrease. When a Hindu converts to Christianity, it does not merely reduce the population by one, but it also increases the army of the enemy by one. Those who have converted to Christianity or Islam have done so fearing the sword. We have reconverted numerous converts, and we need to do that even today.’”

The line at the end of the poster said, “Christian conversion is a hidden war against Hinduism.”

Yet another poster [at right] quoted Mahatma Gandhi as saying, “If I had the right to legislate, I would abolish conversions. I would welcome only those foreigners who come for social service. It is true that because of missionaries, the culture and lifestyle of Hindu families change.”

The statement in the footer read, “Conversion is the second name of violence.”

Influx of Foreign Money

Another poster [at left], titled, “Flood of Foreign Money”, carried a list of foreign agencies that sent money to India during 1997-98 and the amount they sent. The list included the Christian Children Fund, USA: 647.8 million; the Evangelische Zentralstelle (EZE), Germany: 590 million; the Faster Parents Plan International, the USA: 554.5 million; the International Catholic Missionary Work, USA: 486 million; and so on.

The poster stated, “There are three armies of colonialism, namely, ground, water, and air, and fourth one is the Church.”

No Forgiveness

One poster [not shown] titled, “Time has changed, not thinking,” delivered an ominous warning to Christian missionaries, saying, “The mistake of forgiving the offender 17 times will not be repeated.”

ICC has additional photos and descriptions of the posters upon request.

END

ICC is a Washington-DC based human rights organization that exists to help persecuted Christians worldwide. ICC delivers humanitarian aid, trains and supports persecuted pastors, raises awareness in the US regarding the problem of persecution, and is an advocate for the persecuted on Capitol Hill and the State Department. For additional information or for an interview, contact ICC at 800-422-5441.

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ICC (International Christian Concern) and include our web address www.persecution.org. Contact Jeff King President, 301-989-1708, icc oZC persecution.org

Imagining India as Hindu rashtra

By Jyotirmaya Sharma

(Feb. 24 2006, The Hindu)

...The greatest impediment in the way of "a true vision of the nation," as Golwalkar chose to put it, was the liberal idea that various communities - and here he means Hindus, Muslims, Christians - were to be considered as parts of a single nation. On the contrary, Indian national life was the ideal of Hindu rashtra. Here, the foremost Sangh ideologue speaks of the Hindu rashtra as an inalienable, eternal, unbroken, and unified identity. He calls it the reality of India, whether people accept it explicitly or not.

To argue otherwise was to lose sight of a clear conception of the nation. What about other communities living within India? Golwalkar is forthright in his exposition: "An unclear imagination of the nation - the impractical idea that whoever comes here and stays will be considered a part of the nation; even today if any alien comes and stays, he is deemed as part of the nation - it is to this level that there is lack of clarity of thought." While he is acutely aware of this stance being branded racial, communal, and narrow, he exhorts his audience not to be ashamed of the claims of the Hindus...

Golwalkar addressed his last ideological session of the RSS, called chintan baithak in RSS parlance, in Thane from October 28, 1972 to November 3, 1972. The very first words that Golwalkar uttered were: "This is our Hindu rashtra." He declared the goal of the Sangh as the re-establishment of the glory, excellence and universal authority of the Hindu rashtra. There was a certain definitiveness, even stridency, in his tone. Those who did not believe in the truth of the Hindu rashtra were un-Hindu...

In 1972, this tendency in Golwalkar matures into questioning the very existence of India's democratic model. In its place, he argued for a Platonistic framework of wise men leading society and determining its affairs. The illiterate of India were incapable of handling democracy, he argued...

The RSS of today, along with members of the Sangh Parivar, will do well to spend the Golwalkar centenary year in dispassionately evaluating his thought and legacy. More importantly, they will have to either own up the ideological vision of Golwalkar, or tell the ordinary people of India of their points of disagreement and departure with their ideological mentor.

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So long as religion is religion

As Jharkhand debates the prospect of an anti-conversion law, SOLI J. SORABJEE returns to debates in the Constituent Assembly on the freedom to propagate one's religion

SOLI J. SORABJEE

During the framing of India's Constitution, minorities, especially the Muslims and Christians, were most concerned with the guarantee of freedom of religion. Article 13 of the original draft Constitution inter alia provided that all persons have shall the right to freely profess, practice and propagate religion subject to public order, morality and health. It is noteworthy that this freedom extended to all persons - citizens and non-citizens alike - and included the right not merely to profess and practice but also to propagate religion.

What was the founding fathers' understanding of the expression "propagate"? Was conversion included in propagation and consequently in freedom of religion? Was the subject of conversion debated in the Constituent Assembly and what was the ultimate outcome?

At the outset I want to clarify, the present article is not about the legality or propriety or otherwise of conversion. It is to highlight the fact that the topic of conversion was very much in the minds of our founding fathers, was discussed in the Constituent Assembly and in the Advisory Committee on fundamental rights.

There was heated, extensive debate in the Constituent Assembly about the expression "propagation". Loknath Misra was opposed to the expression. He proposed an amendment to delete the word "propagate" from the article. This amendment was rejected. K T Shah mentioned that there are "religions which are professedly proselytising", obviously referring to Islam and Christianity. He was not against what he called "propaganda of religion" (meaning conversion), which is "calculated to change the religion or form of belief or worship inherited with one's parentage", provided the limitations in his proposed amendment were accepted. The principal limitation was that there should be no propagation in institutions receiving aid and consisting of young children.

Pandit Lakshmi Kanta Maitra (W Bengal" stated that "the Indian Christian community happens to be the most inoffensive community in the whole of India". He expressed the view "that propagation does not necessarily mean seeking converts by force of arms, by the sword, or by coercion. But why should obstacles stand in the way if by exposition, illustration and persuasion you could convey your own religious faith to others? I do not see any harm in it".

Krishnaswami Bharathi (Madras) said, "So far as my experience goes, the Christian community have not transgressed their limits of legitimate propagation of religious view and on the whole they have done very well indeed. It is for other communities to emulate them and propagate their own religions as well". He emphasised, "It is very necessary that we should show tolerance. That is the spirit of all religions. To say that some religious people should not do propaganda or propagate their views is to show intolerance on our part".

K Santhanam felt the word "propagate" was unnecessary because propagation is merely a facet of freedom of expression. He noted that the word "convert" was not in the article. He was however happy that no "unlimited right of conversion has been given", obviously referring to the right to propagate one's religion and the limitation in the Constitution that this right is subject to public order, morality and health.

Rohini Kumar Chaudhari (Assam) had "no objection to the propagation of any religion. If anyone thinks that his religion is something ennobling and that it is his duty to ask others to follow that religion, he is welcome to do so".

The speech of T T Krishnamachari (Madras) is significant. He said, "I know as a person who has studied for about 14 years in Christian institutions that no attempt had been made to convert me from my own faith and to practise Christianity. I am very well aware of the influences that Christanity has brought to bear upon our own ideals and our own outlook, and I am not prepared to say here that they should be prevented from propagating their religion. I would ask the House to look at the facts so far as the history of this type of conversion is concerned. It depends on the way in which certain religionists and certain communities treat their less fortunate brethren. The fact that many people in this country have embraced Christianity is due partly to the status that it gave to them. Why should we forget that particular fact?" He concluded his speech by saying it is only fair to give "the same right to every religionist - to propagate his religion and to convert people, if he felt that it is a thing that he has to do and that is a thing for which he has been born and that is his duty towards his God and his community".

K M Munshi, who had taken a leading part in the framing of the Constitution, pointed out that he "was a party from the very beginning to the compromise with the minorities, which ultimately led to many of these clauses being inserted in the Constitution and I know it was on this word (propagate) that the Indian Christian community laid the greatest emphasis, not because they wanted to convert people aggressively but because the word 'propagate' was a fundamental part of their tenet... So long as religion is religion, conversion by free exercise of the conscience has to be recognised. The word 'propagate' in this clause is nothing very much out of the way as some people think, nor is it fraught with dangerous consequences". He urged that the word propagate "should be maintained in this article in order that the compromise so laudably achieved by the Minority Committee should not be disturbed".

Freedom of religion ultimately enacted in Article 25 of our Constitution inter alia provides that subject to public order, morality and health every person has the fundamental right freely to profess, practice and propagate religion. The debates in the Constituent Assembly clearly indicate that our founding fathers did recognise that conversion was implicit in propagation of religion and that the expression "propagate" was deliberately incorporated because Islam and Christianity are proselytising religions. In this context the rejection of Loknath Misra's proposed amendment to delete the word "propagate" is noteworthy.

Our founding fathers were not swayed by narrow-mindedness and prejudices against certain religious minorities. They displayed broad-mindedness and the spirit of tolerance in keeping with our tradition which is most heartening. The crying need of the hour is to preserve that spirit of tolerance in all religious communities which is a must for creating an atmosphere conducive to mutual trust and understanding so essential to the welfare of our multi-religious, multi-cultural nation.

Soli J. Sorabjee is a former attorney general for India

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A Gift from the Fundoos

Hindutva is not a spent force in tribal Gujarat

Second Thoughts / GITHA HARIHARAN

Still working
It’s not as if we have forgotten what the Hindu fundoos are capable of. But since the electoral defeat of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government at the Centre, many of us have been tempted to take a break from foregrounding resistance to the parivar’s day-to-day communal designs. Our attention has also been diverted by the public antics of the BJP and its cohorts as they reinvent their internal power structures. As a result, a little hope has lodged itself in us; a hope that Hindutva is almost a spent force. This hope, like so many of our dearest hopes, is unlikely to be realized quite as soon as we would wish. It’s been business as usual — malignant business — for the Hindutva brigade in several places in the country. The tribal district of Dangs in Gujarat is a case in point.
Dangs, of course, is not the only tribal area that has been at the receiving end of Hindutvadi cultural indoctrination. For several years now, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and its front organizations — such as the Vanvasi Kalyan Parishad and the Hindu Jagran Manch — have targeted the tribal belt. This includes Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Rajasthan, Orissa and Gujarat. In all these areas, the object of the Sangh’s activities has been to “Hinduize” the adivasis.
But Dangs has the misfortune to be in Gujarat, a state in which the BJP government has systematically abused power to isolate and terrorize minorities. In addition to the generalized statewide “policy” of hatred against Muslims, there is the anti-Christian propaganda in tribal areas. Although the population of Christians in the state is a mere 5 per cent, and though there are less than 8,000 Christians in Dangs, the bogeyman at large is the “threat” of Christian conversion.
Consider, for a moment, a view of Dangs if we look at the inhabitants as people, not as numbers on the scorecard of one religion or the other. In this district with more than 90 per cent forest cover, most cultivators barely manage to survive for a few months of the year on the crops they harvest in their smallholdings. Agricultural labourers are able to get some employment only during the agricultural season. The rest of the time, they migrate in large numbers to Surat District — often to work as semi-bonded labour. Overall, the political economy of Dangs makes the district a study of neglect, dispossession and non-development.
What has been the state government’s reaction to such a situation? Like a good servant of Hindutva, the state, in close collaboration with Sangh organizations, has come up with a familiar answer: cultural indoctrination. In other words, never mind the dull and painstaking task of building economic and social progress; what these tribals really need is some new mythology, some new folklore that will tell them who they should be. The fundoo solution to the difficult life of the Dangi tribals has been to gift them with a new goddess that will make them less tribal but more “Hindu”.
The goddess is Shabri, a faithful servant of Ram, just like Hanuman. (But the choice of Shabri also has that edge to it: the adivasis are linked to the dominant ideology-bearing myth only through a female servant of Ram.) With the open support of the BJP state government, organizations affiliated to the RSS have been working hard at mobilizing lakhs of adivasis and Hindutva activists to attend a gathering in mid-February — what is being described as a massive “Shabri Kumbh”. Two fact-finding citizens’ committees visited the district in December 2005 to investigate the plans for the Kumbh. Both teams talked to the local people and activists, and the second team also met local district officials and leaders of the RSS.
The report that emerged from the teams’ investigations describes the misuse of the legend of Ram and Shabri by the attempts to draw adivasis into the Hindu fold. We already know that the RSS lot have a hotline to Ram — they know exactly where he was born, where he travelled, where he made his mid-journey halts. So it should not surprise us when these informed people tell us (or tell the adivasis) that Ram visited Dangs, which is actually the Dandakaranya of the Ramayana. The new legend naturally adds that important detail: a nearby hill, Chamak Dongar, is the exact place where Ram met Shabri and ate the sweet wild berries she tasted for him. This is the place where the “Shabri experts” have chosen to build a temple. In our own Ram-less times, this has meant cutting down a large number of trees, and violating laws protecting forests, as well as tribal land ownership.
The Kumbh Mela is an old tradition; it has been organized by turn in Nasik, Hardwar, Allahabad and Ujjain. But courtesy the new tradition-keepers, the mela is now being organized in Dangs. Professionally prepared CDs reveal the real intention of this gift to the Dangi tribals. They call for the destruction of Christianity, a dangerous foreign faith, just as Ram destroyed Ravan. “Hindu jagao, Christi bhagao” is the rallying slogan.
The report of the fact-finding teams traces the way this anti-Christian propaganda has been building up over the years. It also illustrates the ways in which the propaganda seeks to divide the adivasis and distract them from the real issue in their lives — dispossession. Perhaps worst of all, it undermines tribal identity as it attempts to take tribals “home” to Hinduism through a process called ghar-vapasi or re-conversion.
These findings are based on various testimonies from the Dangis as they describe the strategies of the Hindutva brigade. Typically, the RSS-type activists encourage the adivasis to think of themselves as vanvasis, and encourage the youth to join outfits such as the Bajrang Dal. With the arrival of Swami Aseemanand, a Vishwa Hindu Parishad functionary from West Bengal, ancestral stones where adivasis worshipped or performed agriculture-related rituals were identified, and small temples built next to them. This creates a new, non-tribal practice of housing a god as opposed to the usual practice of a god kept in the open. The traditional practice of sacrificing chickens and goats is stopped. And over a period of time, this “temple deity” is incorporated into the Hindu pantheon as a lesser god — befitting the lower caste status of the “vanvasis”. The promotion of the Shabri legend is in line with this approach to “gift” the tribals mythological characters who were subservient to more elite characters or gods. Community leaders in Dangi villages point out that they have heard of Shabri only in the last year or so. But the shrines for Shabri not only assault tribal identity, they also mean the grabbing of land — as much as sixteen acres in the case of Jairam Kashiram for example.
What will the Shabri Mela bring the Dangi tribals? The collector and others who have bought the RSS line claim it will develop religious tourism, provide employment, and “help instil moral values in the tribals”. The victims of the mela, the Dangis, testify otherwise. What they expect is more intimidation of Christians; more tree-felling and land-grabbing; more threats to an already precarious livelihood; and a new position as a marginal member of the “Hindu family”.

More attacks against Christians in Madhya Pradesh: Is it ever going to stop?

By Vijayesh Lal

30th January 2006: The night of 30th January 2006 was replete with reports of incidents against Christians in Madhya Pradesh.

The state already infamous for attacks on the Christian minority with as many as 4 attacks on the community since 25th January 2006 experienced more of it, with unconfirmed reports indicating at least 18 instances of violence against Christians as India mourned the father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi refered to as the apostle of peace.

The first attack was in Betul in Madhya Pradesh where in Hindutva fundamentalists attacked and attempted to burn a Pentecostal Church. The Church pastored by Senior Pastor K T Samuel was broken into by miscreants. After vandalizing the Church they attempted to set the Church on fire.

The second attack took place in Banapura, District Hoshangabad. Between 12:00 – 1:00 in the night unidentified men broke in the Friend’s Church in Banapura and after vandalizing they set the Church gates on fire.

The police station of Banapura is just opposite the Church and as soon as policemen saw flames from the Church they came to the rescue thus making the attackers flee from the scene. It was the police personnel who doused the fire and protected the Church.

The Friend’s Church is a historical Church and is about 150 years old. It belonged to the UCNI and currently the CNI is the custodian of the Church. Ena Jiwan Masih, an elder of the Church has filed an FIR with the police. We spoke to Mr. David Nathaneal, one of the elders of the Church and he has expressed his concern at the attacks but was appreciative of the police action.

The third attack was again at a Friend’s Church but this time in the town on Itarsi. Unidentified people broke the Church lock and attempted to vandalize the Church, but a major mishap was averted when the miscreants ran when someone raised an alarm.

According to reports received unidnetified people attempeted to burn a Church in Mandla district too, but the police intervened at the right time and thus prevented a major mishap.

All these instances of attacks on Churches, Pastors and Christians do make us wonder about the seriousness with which the government of Madhya Pradesh claims to protect minorities.

Christians in Madhya Pradesh have always suffered some amount of violence and social discrimination but the coming of the BJP led government in early 2004 led to a huge escalation on attacks on the community. The list of atrocities is becoming longer by the day.

Uma Bharati famous for her cow protection drive is also equally infamous for facilitating persecution of Christians. She demonstrated this openly when she gave a clean chit to the BJP and VHP workers after the violence in Jhabua. She instead came on records and appreciated the patience and tolerance of the majority community inspite of provocation (Indian Express, February 3, 2004) thus attempting to divide the society in Jhabua on communal lines.

Even today 14 innocent Christians languish in Alirajpur prison without bail. They are all accused of murder of one of the Hindutva brigades “Martyrs” Arjun Pal. Facts indicate that many of them were not even present at the scene at the time of the violence, but with BJP’s hand on the judiciary, who cares for facts anymore?

A school teacher, Ramesh Baghel, who was in a parent teacher meeting at the time of the violence was targeted and locked up. According to Patras Habil, a representative of the minority commisison in the state, the judge rejecting Ramesh’s bail petition at the High Court acknowledged that the evidence did not point to his involvemnet in the case, but the charge was so grevious and the case so “politicized” that a bail for Ramesh Baghel was not possible.

Reports coming in from Jhabua indicate how the magistrates just happen to go on leave just before the case is due for hearing and so the people continue to be in jail. This is a total disregard of the judiciary and a mockery of justice.

Arjun Pal meanwhile, has been promoted to the stature of a national hero by no less than Mr. Kailash Vijayvargiya, a cabinet minister in the BJP government. A picture collage sponsored by Mr. Vijayvargiya at Indore puts Arjun Pal in the same category as Bhagat Singh, Chandrasekhar Azad, Subhash Chandra Bose and the faithful soldiers who lost their lives at Kargil.

Babulal Gaur the next chief minister of the BJP led government in the state also did little to protect the minorities. It was during his tenure that the biased “Narendra Prasad Committee report” was unveiled, which blames conversions as the reason for the violence in Jhabua. The report predictably does not speak a word against Hindutva elements responsible for the violence.

Shivraj Chauhan, the RSS karyakarta (volunteer) who keeps the RSS ideology very close to his heart, according to the BJP website, and the third chief minister of BJP in less than 3 years, offers little hope for Christians in the state. One only has to take a look at the number of incidents against Christians happened in the state in January 2006 alone to get a feel of the future.

One thing is for sure, the BJP not able to give good governance to the state of Madhya Pradesh, not being able to deliver its basic promise of Bijli, Sadak and Pani (Electricity, Road and Water) is diverting the minds of the people of the state using the only weapon that they are good at: communalism. And it is sad because in the end the only loser and the one cheated is the voter of Madhya Pradesh.

Time to Expose Political Hinduism - Worldpress.org

Time to Expose Political Hinduism - Worldpress.org

Secret Circular of the RSS

ANNEXTURE

Copy of Secret Circular No. 41 / RO / 303 / 11 / RSS / CO3

Local Leaders,

In addition to the old duties the following duties are given. Certain instructions are notified. Teach these patriots and volunteers, send your reactions to the head quarters. After imparting these instructions to the members destroy these papers by burning.

1. Intensify activities to gather fire – arms and Gun powder.

1. To fight against the movements of Muslims and Ambedkarites, win over the SC/ST-s and the backward communities.

1. Propagate the Hindutva concept among Govt. officers.

1. Hindutva concept should be promoted among medical practitioners. Instigate the doctors to use time-barred and take medicines among SC / ST’s and Shudras pretending blood transfusion, so that they will be made invalids.

1. Arrange to chant the Words ‘OM’ and ‘Jai Shri Ram’ in places where infants of SC / SC’s and OBC’s are living.

1. Boycott functions which oppose Hindutva and Brahmanism and Pseudo secularism.

1. Instigate and encourage dealers who sell (today attack nations) lottery tickets and gambling to promote that activities in areas where SC / ST’s and OBC’s live in concentration. In addition to renovating old temples and building new temples, promote organizing religious functions and pujas in government offices. Plunder the mosques of Muslims and the worship place of Non Hindus.

1. Encourage SC / ST / OBC and Muslim women to practice prostitution.

1. Arrange to damage the physical and mental development of the school going children of the OBC / SC / ST’s, specially the children of the Ambedkarites by feeding them food and eatables mixed with poison with the help of teachers, volunteers and food vendors.

1. More and more of OBC / ST children should be admitted to our school and they should be taught pre Hindutva history.

1. Speed up instigating riots against Muslims, Ambedkarites and Buddhists, Such riots should be organized in places far away from where our community people live. Using new local gundas instigate police and Para- military personnel to attack those who are anti Hindu.

1. During riots, SC / ST / Muslim women should be gang raped mercilessly, irrespective of your friendship or acquaintance. In This respect follow Surat model.

1. Continue the work of burning Idols and relics near the places of worship of worship of non- Hindus, deep below in the soil, as you have been doing in the past. Approach the head quarters to substantiate that the Churches, Muslim Mosque and memorials are old Hindu temples.

1. Take initiative to bring out publications opposing Islam and Buddhism. Coin new false stories to substantiate that’s ashoka was not Busshist.

1. Anti-Brahmin literature, publications and new letters or movements of backward communities. Ambedkar among OBC / SC / ST’s

1. As has been advised earlier, let the stagnation of SCs and STs continue

1. Distribute in a big way, stickers and calendars with the pictures of Rama and tracts on Rama

1. Propagate superstitions among OBC / SC / STs. For this purpose continue to avail sadhus and swami’s

1. Continue to convert Jains, Buddhism and Sikhs to Hinduism. Introduce the worship of rama in Jain temples. In this work, follow the Patna model. Report the progress in this matter to the headquarters

1. We should attack communism, communist SC / St and Shudras.

1. We should continue our rebellion against mandal Commission recommendations.

1. Provoke caste riot among different caste groups, particularly among SC /Sts and OBCs.

1. Continue to break the statues of Ambedkar.

1. The Chanakya rule should continue.

1. Indiscriminate love marriage should be organizes among OBCs and Ambedkarites. We should show our male organs to their women. We should kiss them. We should arrange screening dirty blue films and promote use of narcotic drugs by them.

1. Continue mal-nutritions among SC / Sts. As stated earlier, poison the body attack drunk by them. Continue to poison the food taken byt them.

1. We should strengthen our control on news papers. The Hindutva concepts should be taught to the editors of local news papers and they shold be encouraged to publish articles opposing Islam, and supporting puja of rama.

1. we should enroll more and more OBCs / SC and ST members in such political parties which support Hindutva. Before admitting them into these parties they should be properly screened as usual.

1. We should win over Muslim writers, Muslim religious heads and OBCs who were opposed to mandal Commission recommendations. We should propagate the concept of pseudo-secularism.

1. Businessman and pawn brokers should work against those who oppose Hindus and Brahmins (and report about it) in such a way that the economic progress of non Hindus is destroyed.

1. Continue to watch the activities of non Hindus.

1. Continue to kill those who oppose Hindus and Brahmins. As advised earlier dispose all such dead bodies leaving no evidence of such murders.

1. Let full moon day (purnima) meetings of volunteers continue.

1. Let the whistling continue- jaisreeram

               Copy of secret letter dated 15th August 1994 Issues palakkad by the Madhya Pradesh palakkad Brahmana.

                              Jaisreeram

Dear Friends,

The district level meeting of the brahmana samajam was held at palakkad on 15t-8-1994 under the respected Sri trivedi of Jabalpur. The following decisions were taken in the said meeting.

1. The Shudras such as pawer, arar, lodi, kesar should be made to involve themselves in religious functions. That is how they could be kept away from indulging in political issues, keeping themselves supporters and Brahmanism.

1. The politician awakening which has dawned on the SC / St / OBC minorities combine has threatened the leadership of Brahmin. Therefore we should create same confusion and internal quarrels among themselves so that they will be busy in fighting each other.

1. we should tutor the Shudras i,e. the fourth Varna people, that the Indian Constitution is against the hindus and hence it needs change. This issue should be freely talked among the people.

1. As Brahmanical leadership is under threat, all Brahmin leadership who were now in congress, communism and religious groups and caste groups should join together under the banner of Brahmanism.

1. Disturbances  should be created and to spread among the OBCs like Pawar, Marar, Lodis, SCs Muslim, Christians and Buddhists. These people thus should be made to fight each other and die and perish.

1. The brahmanical leadership is threatened by the political activities of Kanshi Ram’s bahujan samaj party and also because of the awakening among Dalits. To fight this, we should spread the news that the BSP is only the party of the Mahars and chamars, only the people of the other small caste shall not join BSP.

1. The labourers belonging to the OBC / SC STs and Muslims have stored a lot of fat in their bodies. Therefore their bodies and minds should be tortured. The Brahmin government office who are controlling them in the office as also outside should torture ans insult them secretly.

Incursions of Hindutva

HARSH MANDER

Tribals in the forested interiors of India today face a grave, new threat. Already dispossessed of land and forest, grappling with debt, hunger, exploitation and bondage, the tribals now face incursions of radical Hindutva, systematically propagated by front organisations of the Sangh, threatening to divide and communalise tribal communities and further distance them from justice.

For the majority of tribals, the Muslim is invisible. The enemy invented for them instead by the Sangh is Christianity, demonised as a dangerous foreign conspiracy to destabilise India, propagated by inducement and fraud by missionaries, pastors and nuns. Healthcare and education provided by them are dismissed as bribes for conversion.

In Gujarat, the epicentre of the war against Christianity is the Dangs district, with 92% tribal population, mainly Bhils and Warlis.

This impoverished district gained notoriety in 1998, when 38 acts of violence were recorded against a population of a few thousand and the pastors in the district.

Independent investigations established that these attacks were a result of hatred and suspicion systematically introduced by activists of Sangh organisations like Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram and Hindu Jagran Manch.

With the Sangh planning a Shabri Kumbh in Dangs in February 2006, there are fears of a repeat. There have been several such gatherings organised by Hindutva activists in the region in recent years, including a Vishal Hindu Mahasangam in Jhabua in MP in 2002, and another Kumbh in Bhilwada in Rajasthan in 2004.

Each gathering was preceded by intensive mobilisation by Sangh activists in tribal households, distribution of lockets and statues of Hindu deities like Hanuman, and doorstep propaganda against Christians.

The choice of Hindu icons for adivasi areas is also telling: Hanuman and Shabri, revered as loyal servants rather than masters like Ram. There are numerous programmes, called 'ghar vapsi' or homecoming, or alleged reconversions of tribals to Hindu faith.

Each of these gatherings left a trail of violence and fear among Christian adivasis, and expansion in support for the BJP.

However, as both anthropologists and district gazetteers testify, adivasis are not originally Hindu, especially not of the narrow Brahmanical version purveyed by the Sangh.

Their worship is animistic: They pray to tigers, cows, and serpents, the moon, hills, forests, wind and rain. Their gods are appeased by animal sacrifice and home-brewed liquor.

The modus operandi of Hindutva activists is to adopt and gradually co-opt these tribal gods. The gods are gradually converted to teetotallers and vegetarians and reinvented as local versions of Hindu gods.

Temples are built to these gods, and Hindu festivals introduced. In the run-up to the Shabri Kumbh, it is being claimed that Ram encountered Shabri and ate the berries tasted by her in Dangs.

As in Ayodhya, Hindutva activists claim precise knowledge of the exact location where Ram encountered Shabri — the spot where the Kumbh is being organised.

Traditionally, there can only be four Kumbhs at fixed locations in 12-year cycles, and this has been unchanged through the millennia.

Plans for the new Shabri Kumbh are thus a manipulation of mythology for sectarian objectives of terrorising the few thousand adivasi Christians, and to promote a false majoritarian Hindu identity in violent opposition to them.

What is even more dismaying is the state's open support. Development funds in one of the country's poorest districts are being diverted for building roads, platforms and dams for the Kumbh reservoir.

The local administration refuses to act against the Sangh pamphlets and CDs, which make repeated venomous references to the church, and ignores the mounting terror among the Christian adivasis, as well as the destruction of the fragile environment.

Instead, the district collector defends these as legitimate religious activities, with the added benefit of development. This openly partisan support of the state government needs to be combated, and the safety of minorities secured.

Else, the tribal regions of India, already dispossessed and impoverished, will be flooded with the bitter blood of sectarian hatred.

The author is a researcher on Gujarat

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How does one convert VHP

Reality Bites - UTTAM SENGUPTA

Religious conversion, said Mahatma Gandhi, is a matter between man and his maker.
But the BJP, which arguably is not opposed to Christians embracing Hinduism or to Richard Gere becoming a Buddhist, has promised to bring in an anti-conversion law in Jharkhand.

The media reported that conversion would be banned by the law. Presumably what they meant was “forcible conversion” because voluntary conversion is guaranteed by the Constitution. It is a little silly of course because the victim of alleged forcible conversion can still reach out to the police and of course to the Sangh parivar for protection.

But neither BJP nor the chief minister has cared to explain why they feel it is so important to bring in the legislation. How many complaints of “forcible” conversion have they, or the police, received so far? How many such people does the BJP state president Yadunath Pandey know personally?

It of course serves a political purpose to divert attention from other issues — religion after all was said to be the opium of the masses---and by projecting a perceived threat, the party can hope to mobilise a certain group of gullible people. But as the Ayodhya experience would have shown them, it is like riding the tiger. It is difficult to dismount because the tiger then would devour you.

One hopes better sense prevails and the BJP drops the issue. If Krishna temples are coming up in several parts of Great Britain the Hindus must be terribly insecure to require an anti-conversion bill. Besides, it is such a waste of energy and time. Surely the NDA government in the state has better things to do ?

The paranoid sections of our society have already ensured that foreign missionaries are no longer allowed into the country. The ones who came here and made a mark are leaving us steadily.

Educational institutions which had the benefit of foreign missionaries would vouch for their sincerity, commitment and contribution. After the foreign missionaries have left or dropped dead, these institutions are no longer the same.

And having studied in such institutions for more than a decade, this writer can say with conviction that he did not come across a single case of “conversion”, forced or otherwise, during all those years.

The first Christian missionaries arrived in the Chotanagpur plateau via Chaibasa. And the first to arrive were not the Catholics but German protestants who travelled through Chakradharpur and Khunti to Ranchi. The Anglicans and the Catholics followed. That was a century and a half ago and in the late nineteenth century Christian missionaries did convert a large number of people, specially tribals.

Indeed the conversion of village headmen would be deemed to mean the conversion of the entire village. Thousands of conversions took place during the last quarter of the nineteenth century and by the First World War, Christian missionaries were well entrenched in Chotanagpur.

The Catholics proved to be more aggressive, more imaginative and more enterprising and hence gradually the Protestants were left behind as the Catholic priests proved their managerial prowess by setting up a string of schools, colleges, hospitals, orphanages and special institutions. Many of them were set up in remote areas and provided tribals and the local people the chance of a lifetime to transform themselves. The new faithful benefited in various ways.

The Catholic Cooperative Society, relief society etc. came up to offer the converts provisions at cheaper rates, easy credit and assistance in times of crises.

The material and tangible benefits might have attracted a few more people to change their faith but had their number been significant, the Christian population in the state would not have been just four per cent or around 11 lakh people. Tribals are said to constitute 27 per cent of the 2.69 crore people, which would come to around 70 lakh people in all. In other words, assuming that all Christians in the state are tribals, the ‘infidels’ constitute around 16 per cent of the tribal population in the state. Or 84 per cent of tribals in the state, according to the last census, are not Christians.

The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) would obviously claim that the number of Christians in the state would have been higher but for their aggressive campaign against conversion.

The VHP has been at the forefront of the anti-Christian tirade, dubbing missionaries as anti-social, questioning their integrity and periodically organising ‘purification’ (shuddhikaran) sessions to re-convert them into ‘Hinduism’ the ‘misguided’. It has now made the somewhat bizarre claim that there are ‘undeclared’ Christians in the state. Tribals in Jharkhand, VHP leaders believe, have converted to Christianity in large numbers but have not acknowledged it publicly. They are biding for time, the VHP fears, and would suddenly rise one day and come out of hiding.

The spectre clearly haunts them but surely that is not a good enough excuse for a legislation. If the government is serious about anti-conversion bill, the least it can do is to issue a white paper on the subject first.

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Only a fair press can be a free press

Only a fair press can be a free press

- By Fali S. Nariman

In the dictionary — not the Oxford or the Cambridge — but in a lesser known work, the Doubter’s Dictionary, "ethics" is defined "as a matter of daily practical concern described glowingly by those who intend to ignore it."

To me "media ethics" means fetters, not freedom. Many years ago the London Times in a grand editorial stressed the importance of public faith in the press as being more fundamental than any constitutional guarantee: "Those who wish to maintain the freedom of a nation must stand behind the editorial freedom of the press, even though they know it will sometimes be abused and often wrong in its judgements. Those in the press who want to maintain its freedom must also try to raise the standard of its news-reporting, its sense of responsibility, its willingness to report all sides and its essential fairness. Only a fair press will retain the public confidence that is needed by a free press."

There we have the right balance — in public perception, it is only a fair press that can really call itself a free press.

Freedom of the press is cherished in all free societies (and tolerated) not for the benefit of the press as an institution but for the greater public good. A.H. Sulzberger, president of the New York Times, made the point many years ago, when he said, "The crux is not the publisher’s freedom to print; it is rather the citizen’s right to know." (William Safire’s Political Dictionary, page 614)

This new right, the right to know, has successfully shouldered itself into a position of pre-eminence under most legal systems of the world including our own.

The role of the press (in referring to the "press," I use the word compendiously encompassing all forms of mass communication including dissemination of news and views in the electronic media) in a state governed by the rule of law is pre-eminent. While it must not overstep the bounds set by law: for instance, for the protection of the reputation of individuals (which includes public officials in the state), it is nevertheless incumbent on the press to impart information and ideas on political questions and on other matters of public interest. Such other matters may also include questions concerning the position and treatment of minorities, and of democratic institutions including courts.

Not only does the press have an obligation to the public which it serves of disseminating all such information and ideas freely and fearlessly — but the public has also the right to receive them. If it were otherwise, the press would be unable to play its vital role of "public watchdog."
The press is also the only means by which politicians and the public can verify whether judges (insular and secretive as a class) are discharging their onerous duties in a manner that is in conformity with the tasks constitutionally and statutorily entrusted to them.

A vigilant press is the handmaiden of effective judicial administration. The press does not simply publish information about cases and trials but subjects the entire hierarchy of the administration of justice (police, prosecutors, lawyers, judges, courts), as well as the judicial processes, to wider public scrutiny.

Free and robust reporting, criticism and debate contribute to public understanding of the rule of law, and to a better comprehension of the entire political and justice system. It also helps improve the quality of these systems by subjecting it to the cleansing effect of exposure and public accountability. "Sunlight" as Justice Brandeis once said, "is the best of disinfectants. And electric light is the most efficient policeman."

But the question remains: is there a legal basis for the notion of a responsible free press? I believe there is: responsible, yes, but not responsible to any government; or to any business tycoon, or magnate or politician; or to any mantra like "media ethics." The press is responsible only to the Constitution which has given the fourth estate this freedom: responsible to help propagate the ideals and purposes in Part IV of our Constitution (Directive Principles of State Policy).

Every Constitution must have an ideal and purpose, and the more I get acquainted with this longest Constitution in the world the more I believe that its heart is in Part IV.

If we look for the reason why we have floundered, over five decades why we have not been able to successfully work the Constitution — despite the efforts of editors, politicians, lawyers, commissions and committees — it is only because we have not had the will to implement the Directive Principles of State Policy — principles declared fundamental in the governance of the country. The Constitution has imposed a duty on the state to apply these principles in making laws: and it is the responsibility of the press to make governments in the Centre and in the states alive to that duty. Call it "ethics" if you like, but that is about the farthest extent I would go in propagating media ethics.

That the press should be responsible and responsive to some ideal is a view not widely shared abroad.

The UN had organised a conference in Durban (South Africa) in August 2001 on racism — which gave rise to much controversy in India as well, because one of the side questions was whether caste was an issue akin to racial discrimination. In her message to that conference, the then UN high commissioner for human rights, Mary Robinson, had a statement assigning to the news media an ethic — what she described as "a moral and social obligation to fight racism and associated evils." But it was not well received by the world press. The World Press Freedom Committee which operates from the US shot off a newsletter, a copy of which was forwarded to me. It took strong exception to the statement. "The news media’s job is to report news — not to support particular social principles," said the chairman of the World Press Freedom Committee. And in a letter to Mary Robinson he said, "The press must not be assigned roles or obligations by outside forces": that was the theme, the so-called justification for absolute press freedom — that is, freedom also to preach racial discrimination or "associated evils"!

The World Press Freedom Committee (in my view) was tilting at windmills. There are no absolutes in freedoms anywhere. In our Constitution we have Article 301 contained in Part XIII. It says that "subject to the other provisions of this Part, trade, commerce and intercourse throughout the territory of India shall be free." It is modelled on Sec. 92 of the Australian Constitution which provides that "trade commerce and intercourse among the states shall be absolutely free." But what is "absolutely free"?

The question arose in a case (from Australia) that went up to the Privy Council: In a celebrated passage frequently quoted, Lord Wright said, "The first question is what is meant by ‘absolutely free’ in Sec. 92. The word ‘absolutely’ adds nothing. The trade is either free or it is not free.

"‘Free’ in itself is vague and indeterminate. It must take its colour from the context. Compare, for instance, its use in free speech, free love, free dinner and free trade. Free speech does not mean free speech; it means speech hedged in by all the laws against defamation, blasphemy, sedition and so forth; it means freedom governed by law." [James vs Commonwealth of Australia 1936 (2) AER 1449 at 1473 PC]

Freedom of the press in the US Constitution is expressed in terms which are absolute: "Congress shall make no law … abridging the freedom of speech or of the press…" Professor Tribe calls it the "Constitution’s most majestic guarantee." And yet down the years, the Supreme Court of the US in a catena of decisions has set its face against any absolute freedoms in the free-speech-and-press cases: the decisions are laboriously set out, analysed and studied in the course of nearly 300 printed pages of Professor Tribe’s book. (American Constitutional Law, Second Edition by Lawrence Tribe Chapter 12, pages 785 to 1061)

Freedom of the press not being absolute, should the media then not be sensitive to some aspects in society? How should they react? Let me begin with a personal anecdote.

Before December 1998 I was instructed, and was appearing for quite some time, as the senior counsel for the state of Gujarat in a public interest litigation in the Supreme Court of India — a PIL filed on behalf of tribals who were displaced and to be displaced by the rising height of the Narmada Dam in Gujarat.

The principal question was whether the indigenous people of this country had an inherent right to live wheresoever they chose and in the manner in which they had been living for centuries, or whether and to what extent they could be compelled to shift to higher locations in the wider public interest. Linked to all this was the question of whether there were adequate measures of rehabilitation provided by the state government. While this case was pending, the then chief minister of Gujarat, called on me at my residence in New Delhi.

It was a courtesy call, but since a few days before he called on me I had read from press reports that Christians in certain parts of Gujarat were being harassed and their Bibles were being burnt, I told him that this action (though having nothing to do with the Narmada case) was something which was totally anathema to me and I would like to see this stopped. He assured me it would be, and in fact said that really there was nothing in it.

Then a couple of months later since there was some policy decision to be taken about improved measures of rehabilitation in the Gujarat case, the then chief minister again called on me. The lot of the Christian minorities had worsened by then. The media had reported that not only Bibles, but churches were also being desecrated, and some destroyed, in various parts of the state. I was extremely annoyed and told him that unless this improved I would have to do what I thought was correct in the circumstances.

Again came more reassurances, but all to no effect and then ultimately in December 1998 since nothing was done at all by the then Gujarat government to alleviate the plight of the Christian minorities, I returned my brief and said I would not appear for the state of Gujarat in this or in any other matter. This caused quite a furore.

The point of the story is not my bravado in returning the Gujarat brief, the point is that but for the revelations by the media — that is, its responsibility as a free press to disseminate information which was of concern to the general public — I would have been ignorant of and would not have known (living in the capital city of Delhi) about what was happening in remote parts of Gujarat.

It was the press which brought these attacks on minorities to light. And I think that it disclosed a very important aspect of press responsibility (or if you don’t like the word "responsibility," of press ethos) — which is, to lean always on the weaker side, and to effectively perform the role of an Opposition to a government whether it is a government at the Centre or of a state. This to me is one of the finest attributes of a free press and the essential role of a responsible press. And this is why when dictatorial governments take over and parliamentary systems of governments are given a go by, the press is always the first victim (next come the lawyers especially the human rights activist lawyers, and then the NGOs).


Introducing "media ethics" would make the press supine: my advice is leave it alone because — particularly because — tyranny fears newspapers; not the rest of the media, not television, only newspapers. Tyrants live in fear of them, and suppress them when they can: sometimes they do it gently calling it "media ethics" ("don’t criticise our top leaders etc, etc"). Sometimes they do it not so gently. The infamous Martial Law Decree of General Jaruzelski, (issued in Poland in December 1981), when a wide range of civil liberties were banned, is a case in point. It is worth quoting in full:

"Good afternoon, Comrades,

"I have the responsibility and the honour of providing to you the rules which have been constructed by the People’s Party to ensure that all our citizens enjoy the restoration of order and truth.

"First rule: Distribution of any publications and the use of printing equipment of any kind will require prior government approval.

"Second: Mail, telephone services and other telecommunications are suspended. They will resume as soon as the Censorship Directorate is fully staffed.

"Third: One radio station and one television station will be operating — both from the capital. I will be the commentator.

"Finally, you may ask what you should do to obtain the government approval necessary for any printing. We are working on that. We’ll let you know.

"Meantime, please understand, Comrades, no newspapers."

No newspapers, that was the thrust of the martial law decree in Poland issued in December 1981. And it had its effect, it was only the endurance and courage of the leaders of Solidarity and other great nationalists that helped overthrow the Jaruzelski government — but not without a fight, not without bloodshed.

Jaruzelski’s Decree must never happen again, anywhere. It can never happen again in a free society governed by the rule of law.

But what about abuses of information, circulation of false information and character assassination by the press? The Press Council can take care of that — but it must remain a Press Council without much bite: any form of press control degenerates into government control. Are the blessings of a free press really worthwhile?

There is only one answer to this and it was given effectively by India’s Supreme Court way back in 1950 — the year of the birth of our Constitution. Justice Patanjali Sastri speaking for himself (and Chief Justice Kania, and Justices Mahajan, B.K. Mukherjee and Das) in a Constitution Bench decision in Romesh Thapar’s case, said: "Thus, very narrow and stringent limits have been set to permissible legislative abridgement of the right of free speech and expression and this was doubtless due to the realisation that freedom of speech and of the press lay at the foundation of all democratic organisations, for without free political discussion no public education, so essential for the proper functioning of the processes of popular government, is possible. A freedom of such amplitude might involve risks of abuse. But the framers of the Constitution may well have reflected, with Madison who was the leading spirit in the preparation of the First Amendment of the Federal Constitution, that ‘it is better to leave a few of its noxious branches to their luxuriant growth, than, by pruning them away, to injure the vigour of those yielding the proper fruits" (Quoted in Near v Minnesota, 233 US 607 at 717-8) (AIR 1950 S.C. 124)

That answer held good in 1950. It must hold good today.


Fali S. Nariman is Senior Advocate, Supreme Court of India, and the president of Bar Association of India