Author: Priti Gandhi
Publication: The Pioneer
Date: December 19, 2014
URL:     http://www.dailypioneer.com/columnists/oped/ignoring-spirit-of-the-law.html

Constitution says all religions must be dealt with equally. Why have different laws then, writes PRITI GANDHI

 It all began with Mughal ruler Aurangzeb cherishing the ambition of converting India into an Islamic land. For this, he forced religious conversions, destroyed thousands of Hindu temples and encouraged even the rape and killing of women and children during his reign. This was followed by the famous Tipu Sultan, who invaded Malabar in the late 18th century, during which he forcefully converted over 4,00,000 Hindus to Islam. They were given an option between death or adopting Islam. Another practice that was adopted by these rulers was the exemption from the heavy taxes levied by their kingdoms — thejeziya and the kharaj (property tax) if a person agreed to adopt Islam. During the Moplah riots of 1921 in Kerala, Muslim Mappilas forcibly converted lakhs of Hindus to Islam and killed all those who refused to apostatise.

 During the Noakhali genocide of Hindus in 1946, several thousand Hindus were forcibly converted to Islam by Muslim mobs. In the 1998 Prankote massacre, 26 Kashmiri Hindus were beheaded by Islamists after they refused to convert to Islam. The militants struck when the villagers refused demands from the gunmen to convert to Islam and prove their conversion by eating beef. Even the then Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah admitted that he had never seen such a shocking, bloodcurdling tragedy ever before. No bullets were fired; the villagers were simply butchered.

 Tactically, Christians missionaries were very different from the Muslim invaders when it came to conversions. They have been extremely persistent but slightly more subtle in their approach. With their immense power of money and resources thanks to the billions of dollars in donations pouring in from across the world (NGOs, mostly Christian, received `1,03,724 crore by way of foreign contributions between 2001 and 2012 — source: Ministry Home Affairs), they would normally target the naivete and poverty of the uneducated, the underprivileged, the poor and the hungry. There have been several cases of violence reported even in the process of Christian conversions. The Baptist Church of Tripura is alleged to have supplied the National Liberation Front of Tripura with arms and financial support and to have encouraged the murder of Hindus, as a means to de-populate the region of all Hindus.

 The NLFT allegedly issued a ban on the Hindu festivals of Durga Puja and Saraswati Puja, and declared it their mission to expand what they described as the kingdom of God and Christ in Tripura. Also, in 2009, the Assam Times reported that about fifteen armed Hmar militants, members of Manmasi National Christian Army, tried to force Hindu residents of Bhuvan Pahar, Assam to convert to Christianity.

 To assume that conversion is a concept which came into being only after the BJP assumed power (as it is being portrayed by some) would be most foolish. Any person with the slightest knowledge of history, well knows that conversions have been going on in the Indian sub-continent since time immemorial. It’s just that different political parties take up the issue on different occasions to suit their personal agenda and further their own cause. Therefore, to maintain communal harmony, one option that could be considered would be to ban religious conversions. Presently only five States — Arunachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Odisha — have anti-conversion laws.

 Another interesting point to be noted is that, inspite of India claiming to be a secular democracy where all religions are treated as equals, we have different laws for different religions. Take for example, places of worship. Through the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowment Act of 1951, State Governments have appointed managers to the boards of temples in the name of better administration. This act does not apply to mosques because Muslim trust properties come under a separate Wakf Act; and strangely, churches remain completely autonomous, with no questions asked.

 This Act allowed State Governments and politicians to take over thousands of Hindu temples and maintain complete control over these temples and their property. All major decisions are taken by these State Governments using the power accorded through this Act. They can sell the temple assets and properties and use the money in any way they choose. This also includes the money that is directly donated by the pilgrims and devotees who attend the temple, given for the temple upkeep, or for the priests and deities.

 On several occasions, this money is disbursed by the Government for causes or to other non-profit organisations that have absolutely no connection with the source of donation. Why this Act does not apply to churches and mosques, is a question that remains unanswered. In the case of places of worship, what's good for the goose surely doesn’t seem to be good for the gander.The right to freedom of religion, covered in Articles 25, 26, 27 and 28 of the Constitution, provides religious freedom to all citizens of India. The objective of this right is to sustain the principle of secularism in India. Citizens are free to preach, practice and propagate any religion of their choice.