By Verghese V Joseph –
Bengaluru: With the Karnataka Government all set to table the anti-conversion bill in the Belagavi session this winter, Christians from all walks of life under the banner of All Karnataka United Christian Forum for Human Rights (AKUCFHR) gathered for a Peace Assembly on Saturday evening at St. Francis Xavier’s Cathedral Grounds in Bangalore.
The Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and his cabinet colleagues have reiterated repeatedly that the Government will table a bill on Anti–Conversion during the upcoming winter sessions of the Assembly beginning December 13 in Belagavi. Understandably, the entire Christian community in Karnataka have opposed the proposal of Anti-Conversion Bill in one voice and questioned the need for such an exercise when sufficient laws and court directives are in place to monitor any aberration of the existing laws.
The BJP MLA from Hosadurga (in Chitradurga district) Goolihatti Shekhar, during the recent monsoon session of the Karnataka Assembly, claimed that religious conversions “by force or through inducement” was “rampant” across the state. The MLA also said that 15,000 to 20,000 people, including his own mother, were converted to Christianity in his constituency.
However, when the taluk administration of Hosadurga conducted an enquiry into allegations made by the MLA, Goolihatti Shekhar, and the result of their enquiry showed that there were no such attempts of forced conversions and that those who are converted to Christianity, did so willingly.
According to Census of India data, the percentage of Christian population in the country in 2001 was 2.34 percent. In 2011, the Christian population declined marginally from 2.34 percent to 2.30 percent. The situation in the state of Karnataka is no different. The statistics give a clear picture that the Christian population in the state of Karnataka during the 2001 census amounted to 1.91 percent, while it significantly decreased to 1.87 percent in the year 2011. If there were rampant conversions, as claimed by the MLA and others, the Christian population — in both state and nation — should have seen an increase. However, the data indicate that a lot of hue and cry over religious conversion is nothing but futile exaggeration.
Christian organisations point out that there are several flaws in the proposed anti-conversion bill. Some of the serious issues are:
1. The Anti-Conversion Bill is primarily targeted against the minorities. All minorities and secular sections will have to raise a united voice against this.
2. The first Anti-Conversion Law was passed in Orissa in 1967. The attacks on the Christians began from seventies onwards, culminating in Kandhamal genocide in 2007 and 2008. The law gave a justification for the attacks on the Christians.
3. After Odisha, the Anti-Conversion Law was passed in six other states in India. Not much resistance was put up against such an undemocratic law. As a result, the attacks on the Christians increased in all these states.
4. Today, there is enough documentation to show that persecution of Christians is taking place in every state and every union territory in India. The proposed law will only make the situation worse.
5. The issue of forced conversion is a highly exaggerated subject. Many of BJP leaders have studied in Christian schools and they have also chosen Christian hospitals for the medical treatment. None of them were forcefully converted.
6. In Kandhamal, forced conversion has taken place by the Hindutva forces by placing axes on the necks of the Adivasi Christians and Dalit Christians. They were forcefully converted to Hinduism. The culprits have not punished despite the Anti-Conversion Law. All the victims still go to church and believe in their own original faith, despite the use of force in 2008. Faith is something that is deeply personal. It cannot be forced.
7. In case if at all there is a case of forced conversion taking place, the present law under the Indian Constitution is more than sufficient to deal with such situations. There is no need for any additional law.
8. Anti-Conversion Law is a violation of the foundations of the Indian Constitution. It violates many articles in the Indian Constitution. Even B R Ambedkar who was the chief architect of Indian Constitution had converted to Buddhism without the permission of the state.
9. The Anti-Conversion Law is a shame on the secular principles outlined by the Indian Constitution. All secular sections should raise their voice unitedly on this dangerous law. It is better to foresee communal violence before it really takes place.
10. The process of passing such a law in hurried manner itself is faulty. The Karnataka Government says that the draft of the bill will be ready on December 5 and it will be tabled in the legislature session starting from December 13. So, where is the time and space for a public discussion? In crucial matters of this order, in a democracy, no bill should be allowed to be tabled without a proper public discourse. The bill should not be allowed to be tabled, they felt.
Watch below the entire Christian Community speaking in one voice against the proposed anti-conversion bill.