Patna:
Amid the ongoing “homecoming” or gharvapsi programmes by the hard-line Hindutva groups in India, 45 Dalit families in Bihar who embraced Christianity recently have sought protection from the local police, apprehending threats to their lives.
The development came after scores of poor Hindus from Atia village in southern Bihar’s Gaya district had converted to Christianity last week. Around 200 villagers from extremely downtrodden community were believed to have voluntarily embraced Christianity during the Christmas Day function organised on December 25 but now they allege various right-wing groups, such as the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and the Bajrang Dal have been issuing constant threats, asking them to get back to the Hindu fold.
“Some 30-40 intruders raided our village on the night of December 26 and threatened to kill us if we don’t return to Hindu fold. They also threatened to burn our homes,” the panicky villagers have mentioned in their written petition to the Magadh University (Bodh Gaya) police station, seeking protection from the police.
The villagers stated that the right-wing groups also warned that they would be deprived of all government facilities if they did not pay heed to their appeal and continued following Christianity. “We have been living in peace right since we converted to Christianity. Not only did the drinking obsession among us come down but also there has developed sudden awareness towards education but now the rightist Hindu groups are forcing us to get back to Hindu fold,” one of the converts Jitendra Manjhi said.
On Monday, the Hindutva groups organised a “purification” programme at the village to welcome back the converts to Hindu fold again but none reportedly turned up for the ritual.
Taking into account the villagers’ threats, the local administration has deployed police force at the village. “We are looking into the complaint of the villagers,” the local police official Jai Shankar Kumar told the media on Tuesday adding action would be taken after proper inquiry.
“Everyone holds the right to follow one’s own religion. What we have come to know is that the villagers have not converted out of any intimidation or allurement; rather they voluntarily converted to Christianity,” Bihar chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi said adding police force had been deployed at the villager to maintain communal harmony at the village.
Former deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi of the BJP, however, sought a new law to stop religious conversion in Bihar. A number of religious conversions were reported from various districts of Bihar, such as Bhagalpur, Madhepura, Munger and Gaya this month, charging the political atmosphere.
“There have been sudden spurt in conversions of poor Dalits to other religions which is indeed a matter of serious concern. Now, the Bihar should enact new legislation to put a stop to such religious conversions,” Modi said adding several Indian states, such as Gujarat, Rajasthan, Chhatisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Arunachal Pradesh, had already come out with such laws.
