HVK Archives: BJP leader plans reconversion of one lakh tribals
BJP leader plans reconversion of one lakh tribals - The Indian Express
N D Sharma
()
28 April 1997
Title : BJP leader plans reconversion of one lakh tribals
Author : N D Sharma
Publication : The Indian Express
Date : April 28, 1997
First there were conversions. And now, if Rajya Sabha Bharatiya
Janata Party MP Dilip Singh Judeo has his way, there will be
"reconversions"; as many as one lakh of them.
The parliamentarian plans to "bring back" that many tribals of the
Chhatisgarh belt to the Hindu fold under his "Operation Ghar
Vaapasi (Operation Return Home)" by the end of this year. Already,
Judeo claims, 90,000 tribals have been reconverted.
The MP's move has, not surprisingly, sparked off denials. The
area's Christian leaders have challenged Judeo's "reconversions" on
the ground that the tribals had never been Hindus in the first
place and hence there was no question of their "ghar vaapasi".
Judeo, however, is going about his plan with much fanfare. Unlike
the reported slow and steady approach of the Christian
missionaries, his programmes are grand affairs. Tribals come
carrying their traditional weapons of bow and arrow. Judeo himself
washes their feet with water from the Ganga. After this, the
tribals are deemed to have returned to the Hindu religion.
The latest of such "reconversions" was reportedly organised at
Basna, some 140 kin from Raipur, in the middle of this month.
Around 200 tribals are said to have participated in the programme.
Raigarh district, along with Gumla and Ranchi districts of Bihar,
is predominantly inhabited by the Oraon tribe, which has reportedly
long been a favourite hunting ground of Christian missionaries. The
biggest Catholic church of the region is situated at Kunkuni in
Raigarh and it controls a large number of missionary schools in the
belt. Judeo claims to have long been "concerned" at the activities
of the missionaries. A few decades ago, ashram schools were even
set up in the region for imparting education to tribals in "Indian
culture" to prevent alleged conversions. These schools are
controlled by the Vanavasi Kalyan Ashram, which has its
headquarters in Raigarh.
Judeo has also organised to raise funds for his programme abroad,
"like they (missionaries) do". The MP gets his ghar vaapasi
programmes videographed and sends the cassettes abroad via the
Vishwa Hindu Parishad network. These cassettes are then used to
collect money from Hindus settled in other countries.
Ironically, the tribals are the least bothered by such claims and
counter-claims. Though some of them have indeed embraced
Christianity and even been reconverted, it has made little
difference to their lives. Most continue to live in penury and
ignorance, and recognise their own tribal deities and customs.
Recently, a reporter of Raipur-based Deshbandhu met some of these
"reconverted" tribals at Basna. They revealed that they had never
become Christians. According to the tribals, some missionaries had
approached them during crises with help. In return, their names
were written down in registers. "That was our only association with
Christianity," the newspaper quotes them as saying.
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