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Conversion census scares Gujarat Christians: The Asian Age
Ahmedabad, May 30: The Gujarat government has been conducting a discreet survey of Hindus who converted to Christianity in the last decade in Patan district, raising doubts about the its promise to fairly implement Gujarat`s Freedom of Religion Act, 2003.
Ahmedabad, May 30: The Gujarat government has been conducting a discreet survey of Hindus who converted to Christianity in the last decade in Patan district, raising doubts about the its promise to fairly implement Gujarat’s Freedom of Religion Act, 2003.
This survey began on May 24 in Dungripur, Tankvasna and some other villages situated on the Unjha-Patan road. The administrator of the Catholic Ashram in Dungripur village, Father Munnu, who asked to furnish details about the Christian institution.
The state government, as usual, claims it has not ordered any such survey. Patan deputy superintendent of police R.R. Bhagat said although a discreet inquiry was carried out by the police in some villages of the district, there was no malafide intention. "It can not be termed a survey as only a few people were questioned to find out the truth about some media reports about mass conversions in the region. We wanted to find out the facts and check rumours before they created a law and order problem in the villages," he said.
Meanwhile, All-India Christian Council member Samson Christian has filed a writ petition challenging the "census of the Christian community in Patan" in the Gujarat high court. On Thursday, the Gujarat high court’s Justice K.A. Puj issued notices to the state government, the director-general of police, Patan district superintendent of police and police inspector of Patan taluka police station over the petition.
Father Prasad Gonsalves, who says he witnessed the incident on May 25, said, "A police team led by police inspector A.H. Jardosh sneaked into the Catholic Ashram early on May 25 morning. Father Munnu was asked to brief the police about the number of people who have converted to Christianity in the recent past, those who come for prayers, about the funding of the institution and about students boarding there among other strange details." Father Gonsalves, head of the Catholic Ashram in Radhanpur village, was on a visit to Dungripur on May 24. Father Munnu could not be contacted on Thursday.
Father Gonsalves said, "The police was not interested in gathering genuine information, which we were furnishing them with. Rather, the officials probed the domestic servants, Raju and Abhaysinh, and asked them peculiar questions about the functioning of the Christian institution in the region. They were even asked if they have been converted to Christianity and if the institution forces villagers to convert. The two were also made to sign some papers."
On May 24, the same team also visited the nearby village of Tankvasna and had questioned the villagers about their religious identities. They even took photographs of houses belonging to Christians. Later in the afternoon of May 24 they visited the Catholic Ashram and took photographs of it, allegedly without the knowledge of Father Munnu.
On May 26, the police team allegedly went to other nearby villages to question boys of the Catholic Ashram boarding school. One of the boys, Praveen, 12, of Odhava village, was made to sign some papers, Father Gonsalves claimed.
Refuting allegations that there have been mass conversions to Christianity, religious heads of the region say Christians are a minuscule percentage of Patan’s population. "There would be not more than 60 Christians here and hence there is no reason why the government should make a hue and cry about Christian missionaries forcing people to convert," Father Gonsalves said. He added that approximately 15 to 20 people of Tankvasna village converted to Christianity, "but that was long ago."
Mr Samson Christian has, however, sought the intervention of the National Human Rights Commission and National Commission for Minorities. "The community fears that the Gujarat government will target us in the same manner it targeted Muslims after the Godhra carnage," Mr Samson said, adding that the survey of Christians across Gujarat is a government tactic to collect information and later target the community later.
This survey began on May 24 in Dungripur, Tankvasna and some other villages situated on the Unjha-Patan road. The administrator of the Catholic Ashram in Dungripur village, Father Munnu, who asked to furnish details about the Christian institution.
The state government, as usual, claims it has not ordered any such survey. Patan deputy superintendent of police R.R. Bhagat said although a discreet inquiry was carried out by the police in some villages of the district, there was no malafide intention. "It can not be termed a survey as only a few people were questioned to find out the truth about some media reports about mass conversions in the region. We wanted to find out the facts and check rumours before they created a law and order problem in the villages," he said.
Meanwhile, All-India Christian Council member Samson Christian has filed a writ petition challenging the "census of the Christian community in Patan" in the Gujarat high court. On Thursday, the Gujarat high court’s Justice K.A. Puj issued notices to the state government, the director-general of police, Patan district superintendent of police and police inspector of Patan taluka police station over the petition.
Father Prasad Gonsalves, who says he witnessed the incident on May 25, said, "A police team led by police inspector A.H. Jardosh sneaked into the Catholic Ashram early on May 25 morning. Father Munnu was asked to brief the police about the number of people who have converted to Christianity in the recent past, those who come for prayers, about the funding of the institution and about students boarding there among other strange details." Father Gonsalves, head of the Catholic Ashram in Radhanpur village, was on a visit to Dungripur on May 24. Father Munnu could not be contacted on Thursday.
Father Gonsalves said, "The police was not interested in gathering genuine information, which we were furnishing them with. Rather, the officials probed the domestic servants, Raju and Abhaysinh, and asked them peculiar questions about the functioning of the Christian institution in the region. They were even asked if they have been converted to Christianity and if the institution forces villagers to convert. The two were also made to sign some papers."
On May 24, the same team also visited the nearby village of Tankvasna and had questioned the villagers about their religious identities. They even took photographs of houses belonging to Christians. Later in the afternoon of May 24 they visited the Catholic Ashram and took photographs of it, allegedly without the knowledge of Father Munnu.
On May 26, the police team allegedly went to other nearby villages to question boys of the Catholic Ashram boarding school. One of the boys, Praveen, 12, of Odhava village, was made to sign some papers, Father Gonsalves claimed.
Refuting allegations that there have been mass conversions to Christianity, religious heads of the region say Christians are a minuscule percentage of Patan’s population. "There would be not more than 60 Christians here and hence there is no reason why the government should make a hue and cry about Christian missionaries forcing people to convert," Father Gonsalves said. He added that approximately 15 to 20 people of Tankvasna village converted to Christianity, "but that was long ago."
Mr Samson Christian has, however, sought the intervention of the National Human Rights Commission and National Commission for Minorities. "The community fears that the Gujarat government will target us in the same manner it targeted Muslims after the Godhra carnage," Mr Samson said, adding that the survey of Christians across Gujarat is a government tactic to collect information and later target the community later.