Saffron lies

On February 24, Ekta, an independent committee for communal amity, released the findings of its investi
gations into allegations of ‘large–scale, forced conversions in Ulhasnagar. The allegations, made by the BJP, VHP and other youth Hindu groups in early February, held that in the past year there had been a huge spurt in the number of conversions at Ulhasnagar, Ambernath and Nasik areas in Maharashtra. It was further claimed that they were conducted by force and through monetary and other inducements in several cases.

The BJP leader, Sanjay Rajani, claimed to have received numerous complaints against the activities of the missionaries. They allegedly approached younger members of a family at a time when the elders were away at work, ‘harassed’ them and beguiled the women and children into converting to Christianity. Dr. P.R. Ram who released the report said that in view of the nation–wide allegations against Christian Missionaries, Ekta decided to conduct an inquiry into the charges at Ulhasnagar, as that was reported as the area with the largest number of conversions.

The inquiry team first spoke to members of the BJP, VHP, RSS and other Hindu groups who had made the allegations. They first met Rajani, who admitted that he had not personally met any of the families or individuals who had been converted forcibly or through monetary inducements. After seeking details of the allegations, they investigated each specific case.

The BJP had extensively propagated the case of one Purshottam Gurnani, who had alleged that his family members had been forcibly converted to Christianity. The Ekta inquiry committee found that it was his daughter, Chanda, who had converted to Christianity and she asserted she had converted of her own free will. In fact, she countered, it was her father who was using the support of the BJP activists in order to terrorise her into not marrying the person of her choice.

The allegations of monetary inducements for conversion were also found to be completely baseless. Prakash Vasiani, owner of three medical shops, was alleged to have taken Rs. 25 lakh for conversion as a result of which he had been able to expand his business from one to three medical stores. The inquiry revealed, however, that all the three shops had been in operation six years before Vasiani embraced Christianity.

Satyapal Malani, president of the Hindu Manch, had also alleged that missionaries had been breaking Hindu idols in the houses of converts. When asked to cite some specific instances, Malani could name only one instance — that of Mrs. Daya. When the committee members interviewed Mrs. Daya, she refuted the charge, saying that she had not broken but simply removed the idols of Saibaba and Ganesh after her conversion. The removal, furthermore, was not at the instance of the Christian missionaries, she said.

Malani had further alleged that in the past year alone, 20,000 conversions had taken place in Ulhasnagar. However, the committee found that in a total population of 7 lakh residents, the total Christian population accounted for only 12,000. Ekta’s investigation revealed that not more than 30 to 50 families had converted to Christianity in the past year–and–a–half.

While releasing the report to the press, Ram said that in the current volatile situation the findings of this investigation could well serve as an example to gauge the truth of such allegations. Responding to questions on the issue, he also denounced the connection that is made between Dharmantaran (change of religion) and Rashtrantaran (change of nationality). "If I change my faith, does that mean that I am no longer Indian?" he asked. "A vicious propaganda is being spread by the VHP that if you revoke your religion you revoke your nationality, too. My religion is not related to my nationality." He further posed the question, "Christianity has existed in India since the past 1959 years. Why has it been an issue only in the past year?" Refuting the theory that non–Hindus were largely responsible for insurgency in the country, he clarified that insurgency was greatest in Manipur in the Northeast — the state with the lowest number of Christians in the region. "The first call for separation from post–independence India did not come from Christians or Muslims, but from Tamil Nadu, over the language issue. Insurgency has nothing to do with religion", he asserted.

The Ekta report also suggested that the allegations may well be a tactic to shift the people’s attention from the real problems plaguing Ulhasnagar — pollution, water shortage, traffic, and an overall bad performance in provididng municipal and civic amenities — as the civic elections are due in a year’s time. The allegaitions were shrewdly well–timed to coincide with the nation–wide anti–Christian campaign.