By Ram Puniyani,
One has been hearing a lot about the conversion activities of Christian missionaries. That there is a threat to Hindu nation due to Adivasis converting to a ‘foreign religion’ is becoming part of social common sense. The real face of the conversion came to fore when after the attack on nuns in Alibaug (March 2008) was followed by a massive conversion to Hinduism, Shuddhi ritual (April 27, 2008) in nearby Mumbai. The person involved in both these has been the same.
In the attack on the Adivasis, the followers of Sadguru Narendra Maharaj of Ramanandcharya Peeth were involved and in the elaborate Shuddhi ritual the Guru himself led the conversion. Talking on the occasion he said the Hindus are being reduced to a pitiable minority because of the activities of Christian missionaries. He also came down heavily on the central Government for not pushing through the anti conversion bill and criticized the Maharashtra Government for passing the anti Superstition bill, according to him both these steps are anti Hindu.
His claim that Hindus are being reduced to minority is a stuff of make believe world as demographically India’s Hindu population is fairly stable. The anti conversion bills which many state Governments have passed/are passing are totally against several articles of our constitution. Our constitution encourages the promotion of rational thought, in pursuance of which Maharashtra Government has done the laudable job of passing anti superstition bill. Those opposing this bill surely want the persistence of blind faith in society, it is this which strengthens their social and political clout and Guru is forthright as far as that is concerned. The same Guru’s followers are adept to violence off and on. In Alibaug the people had assembled to hear a lecture on AIDS awareness when his followers assaulted the nuns.
How does one understand the rising incidence of violence in Adivasi areas? One recalls just around the Christmas time in 2007, massive violence was unleashed in Kandhmal and Phulbani districts of Orissa. In most of the Adivasi areas Dangs, Gujarat, Jhabua Madhya Pradesh, areas of Orissa, there has been a recurrent violence. It is these areas which have seen the conversion of Adivasis into Hindu fold. One must clarify that Adivasis are Animists, neither Christians nor Hindus. While some conversions to Christianity have been occurring they are not new as Christianity has been here from centuries. These conversions are due to many reasons, missionaries work in the area of education and health in particular. In recent times the overall population of Christians has been declining marginally (1991-2.60%, 1981-2.44%, 1991-2.34, 2001-2.30%) Part of the conversion surly is due to some groups amongst Christian missionaries who do believe in aggressive proselytization.
The Adivasi areas have invited the wrath of RSS combine from last two decades in particular since Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram, an RSS affiliate intensified its activities in Adivasi areas. In these areas there is a vicious anti Christian propaganda leading to violence. Since this takes place in remote places the culprits can get away easily, more so with the complicity of communalized state apparatus. In these areas various Godmen with RSS affiliation, direct or indirect, have been either been setting up their Ashrams or extending their influence, Aseemanand; Dangs and Lakhhanand in Orissa, Asaram bapu in Jhabua refion MP, and Narendra Maharaj in Maharashtra.
Usually violence and intimidation is accompanied by cultural cooption. This latter has been done by holding huge Hindu Sangams and Shabri kumbhs. Dilip Singh Judeo, has been doing conversions in Adivasi areas of Madhya Pradesh. Sanskritzation is also operative in these conversions to Hinduism. The process has been called Ghar Vapsi or Shuddhikaran (purification) on the premise that Adivasis are Hindus. This is unmindful of the fact that Advasis are primarily animists and do not fall in the category of religion as a social phenomenon, as applicable to Hindus, Muslims, Christians etc.
Adivasis are the most deprived lot of the society and have been targeted more for political reasons than for their own welfare. As during the early 1920s, Shuddhi movement (Hindu Communalism) was unleashed in parallel to Tanzim (Muslim communalism), now again the Shuddhi is back. Ghar Vapasi word has been cleverly coined. While browbeating Christian missionaries for conversions, the same term for its own activities will bring in disrepute. So this term, Ghar vapasi; returning home! The propaganda behind this says that Adivasis are essentially those Hindus who ran away to forests to escape the conversions by Muslims kings. In forests they kept living for long because of which they kept sliding down on the scale of social hierarchy. This concoction serves two purposes. One it feeds into the misconception that Islam spread by sword and also makes the Adivasi’s claim as the original inhabitants, null and void so the Hindus nation’s claim on the country becomes stronger, as they can also claim to be its original inhabitants.
The realization that to impose Hindu rashtra in this country the electoral majority is needed as a starting point, the process of co-opting Adivasis into Hindu fold has been stepped up. And this 8% population can be the wonderful addition to electoral base for the right wing politics. The second advantage is that by indoctrinating them they can be unleashed against the other enemies of Hindu nation, like Muslims, as witnessed in Gujarat, where they were used as ideal foot soldiers for the agenda of Hindu Rashtra.
While one has no problems with the peaceful missionary work of Ramakrishna mission or Christian missionaries one is aghast at this new phenomenon in our society whose primary focus is political, though couched in the language of religion. More human welfare activities in these areas, more emphasis on human rights concerns of this marginalized section of society are what are needed. By emphasizing on blind faith, by spreading hate against other section of society, this phenomenon started by the ilk of Gurus is very dangerous to national Integration.
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