‘VHP Threatening To Demolish Churches in MP,’ Bishop Appeals to President To Intervene

‘VHP Threatening To Demolish Churches in MP,’ Bishop Appeals to President To Intervene

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New Delhi: Seeking president Ramnath Kovind’s urgent intervention to ensure the safety and security of Christians in Madhya Pradesh, a bishop in an appeal said that the ongoing “anti-Christian violence” in the state should be stopped immediately. The letter is also addressed to Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan and Governor Mangubhai C. Patel.

According to the bishop, this appeal is being sent out after individuals claiming to be members of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) threatened to demolish churches in Madhya Pradesh’s Jhabua district.

The Wire tried contacting VHP’s Pravin Togadia for a comment, but received no response. The story will be updated as and when a response is received.

‘Forceful conversion racket’

L.N. Garg, the sub-divisional magistrate of Jhabua, has however told The Wire that VHP members along with some others had approached the administration earlier this month complaining that churches are running a “conversion racket” in Jhabua district.

“We told them that if we find any such instances of forced conversions, we shall investigate the matter. However, so far, we have not found anything,” he said, while speaking to The Wire.

The issue began in early September, when a group of men visited several churches in this district and said that they would demolish all the “illegal structures running as churches”. They also accused the priests of forcefully converting Hindus to Christianity.

But this was not all.

A.C. Michael, the former member of Delhi Minorities Commission and National Coordinator of United Christian Forum (UCF), told The Wire that they were further shocked upon receiving a summons from the tehsildar (collector) of Jhabua, calling several priests to produce the documents of their appointments and conversions under them.

Far from helping the minorities who are being threatened for their faith, Micheal says, the tehsildar directed the Christian priests to present themselves before him to explain the nature of their religious activities.

Legal proceedings if illegal conversion detected

The notice sent to several Christians priests reads, “Under this notice, it is being stated that if you were forcibly converted or converted by someone with some profitable motive, then please come to my office on 22/09/2021 at 12 pm.”

Signed by “Tehsildar Jhabua,” the notice further asked the priests to certify if they themselves were converted through allurement or force while threatening to initiate legal proceedings against any illegal conversions, if detected.

“He has even sought details of their appointment as priests,” Bishop Muniya, Father Maria Stephan, PRO of Bhopal Catholic Archdiocese and President of UCF, Dr. Michael Williams said in a joint statement.

The UCF is an informal umbrella organisation of Christian leadership that monitors and documents human rights violations against Christians.

Also read: Changing Faith: Why Are Political Conversions Legal But Religious Ones Suspect?

On September 17, the Auxiliary Bishop Paul Muniya of the Protestant Shalom Church in Jhabua led a delegation to the tehsildar and submitted a memorandum addressed to the President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind.

The letter said that many Adivasis in Jhabua district who have faith in Jesus Christ are being targeted by Hindutva organisations such as Bajrang Dal and VHP and being framed in fake cases of conversion. “Due to such threats, Adivasis in this area are living under fear and pressure,” the letter said.

Further, the letter noted that if these incidents continue, it could lead to severe damage to the area as communal tension and violence may erupt.

An atmosphere of fear

He also appealed to the state’s governor and chief minister to intervene and diffuse the situation.

“The onslaught on citizens of minority faith continues in Madhya Pradesh. Individuals claiming to be members of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) say they are preparing to demolish churches in the Jhabua district on Sunday, 26 September,” Muniya said in the statement.

Expressing anguish, Muniya further asked, “If there is an illegal structure, let the administration take action. Why are private individuals and organisations issuing such threats?”

Also read: Anti-Conversion Laws See Love as a Hate Crime

He also asked if the same yardstick would be applied to other religious structures in the district and state.

However, till noon on Sunday, no violence or demolition had taken place, The Wire confirmed. Despite this, A.C. Micheal says that there is an environment of fear in the district among the Christian community due to the threats by men claiming to be VHP members.

In a tweet on September 25, the collector of Jhabua said that the district administration is trying to maintain social harmony in the region. “The district administration is fully committed to maintaining social harmony and communal cordiality with full fairness,” the tweet read.

Violence against Indian Christians

Jhabua district is located in western Madhya Pradesh and borders Baroda. Similar unrest was witnessed in the district when Azad Prem Singh, a local leader of the VHP, had demanded the closure of all churches in the area earlier this year.

The bishop says that the continued escalation of communal threats, even though focused on Jhabua and surrounding tribal-dominated districts, could have had repercussions across the country.

He added that states like Madhya Pradesh are even more vulnerable because they have enacted anti-conversions laws.

Madhya Pradesh is among the four Indian states including Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand to have enacted a new anti-conversion law.

Also read: ‘Narcotic Jihad’ and the Delusions of the Catholic Church

Experts and social activists have repeatedly said that anti-conversion laws may be misused by the state to target minority groups such as Muslims and Christians. The law also corresponds with the belief of the Hindu right organisations that Hindus, who are in majority in India, are in danger from the domination of Muslims or Christians.

According to UCF data, Christians in many parts of India continue to struggle to freely practice and propagate their faith, as multiple cases of violence against the minority group across the country continue to surface and get documented everyday.

According to just one month data from March 2020 by the UCF, there were at least 27 incidents of violence against Christians in 10 Indian states including Uttar Pradesh (six), Chhattisgarh (five), Tamil Nadu (three) and Odisha (three), Bihar (two), Karnataka (two), Madhya Pradesh (two), Maharashtra (two), Telangana (one) and Goa (one).

The same data indicates that within the first three months of 2020, a staggering 78 incidents of violence against Christians had occurred. The instances range from mob attacks, threats, intimidation and physical assault.

‘Intolerance has no room in our country’

Father Maria Stephan said, “Christians are peace-loving citizens. We are seeking judicial remedies to ensure peace and harmony in our society. We have no objection to sharing any official details about our work and personnel to the government provided the intention is right.”

Michael Williams of the UCF appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah to stop the “targeted violence” against Christians.

Referring to the members who threatened demolition of churches, he said, “The very fabric of our secular nation is being stretched by a few who do not respect the Constitution of India. Such people are the real anti-nationals and must be dealt with as strictly under law as possible. This intolerance has no room in our country.”

Exercise caution while talking of Narendra Giri’s death: VHP to seers

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The Vishwa Hindu Parishad has appealed to the seer community to “exercise caution” while giving statements related to the death of Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad ’s head Narendra Giri ’s death in Prayagraj recently.Giri, 72, was reportedly found hanging in his room of the Prayagraj-based mutt. The president of the Parishad that has 28 representatives from 13 akharas (Hindu monasteries-cum-ashrams of saints and sadhus), Giri was also in touch with many politically powerful people. VHP working president Alok Kumar said what happened was unfortunate but it was important for the sadhu community to not make remarks that can complicate matters. “He was a learned man, and the loss is grave for all of us. This is not the time to give statements without caution. The role of the parishad in working of akharas and kumbh melas is significant,” Kumar said, adding that the probe should be given time for completion and airing speculations during such time was not right.Giri’s Niranjani Akhara rejected the suicide note and had called it fake. Chief patron of Juna Akhara and general secretary of the parishad, Mahant Hari Giri, said the ABAP was looking at internal issues that could have led the mahant to take a drastic step.Some others such as former Union minister Chinmayanad and BJP MP Pragya Thakur called it a murder, while other seers have alleged land disputes, links with builder lobbies and unregulated financial transactions with lease and sale of land were possible reasons for Mahant Giri’s death.Many seers such as Acharya Maha Mandaleshwar of Shri Panchayati Akhara Niranjani, Kailashanand Giri have also dismissed note allegedly written by Giri and called it a conspiracy.

MP: Christian body urges Modi to intervene as VHP members allegedly threaten to demolish churches

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A Christian rights body has appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah to ensure members of the religious community are safe after those belonging to Hindutva organisation Vishwa Hindu Parishad allegedly threatened to demolish churches in Jhabua district of Madhya Pradesh.

“The onslaught on citizens of minority faith continues in Madhya Pradesh,” a statement issued by the United Christian Forum on Saturday said. “Individuals claiming to be members of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad say they are preparing to demolish churches in the Jhabua district on Sunday, 26 September.”

However, no violence or demolition was reported in the district till noon on Sunday, according to The Wire.

The United Christian Forum is an umbrella organisation of Christians that monitors and documents human rights violations against members of the community.

The statement said that Paul Muniya, the auxiliary bishop of Protestant Shalom Church in Jhabua, had submitted a memorandum addressed to President Ram Nath Kovind to the tehsildar on September 17. The letter sought that the “anti-Christian violence” in the state be stopped immediately.

VHP THREATENS TO DEMOLISH CHURCHES IN MADHYA PRADESH pic.twitter.com/LbSR1PcW8y — A C Michael (@ACMichael1) September 25, 2021

The problem began in early September when a group of men visited several churches in the district and threatened to demolish all the “illegal structures running as churches”, according to The Wire. The men also accused the priests of forcefully conducting religious conversions.

Jhabua Sub-Divisional Magistrate LN Garg told The Wire that members of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad had approached the district administration and complained about a “conversion racket”.

“We told them that if we find any such instances of forced conversions, we shall investigate the matter,” Garg said. “However, so far, we have not found anything.”

The statement by the Christian organisation said that instead of protecting the minorities, the Jhabua administration had asked several priests to explain the nature of their religious activities as well as provide details of their appointments.

“The official letter also asked priests to certify if they themselves were converted through allurement or force while threatening to initiate legal proceedings against against any religious conversions,” the statement by the United Christian Forum added.

The bishop also raised concerns about the local administration allegedly taking sides with those threatening Christians, who make up only 4% of the 10 lakh residents in the district.

“If there is an illegal structure, let the administration take action,” Muniya asked. “Why are private individuals and organisations issuing such threats?”

Muniya also sought to know whether the same yardstick would apply to other religious structures in the district as well as the state.

According to the letter by Muniya, this is not the first time such an incident has taken place in the district. Earlier this year, a local leader of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Azad Prem Singh, had demanded closure of all churches in the district.

Madhya Pradesh anti-conversion law

Madhya Pradesh is one of the many Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled states that have enacted the anti-conversion laws.

The Freedom to Religion Act states that no person shall convert or attempt to convert either directly or otherwise any other person from one religion to another by misrepresentation, allurement, use of threat or force, undue influence, coercion or by marriage or abet or conspire such conversion.

If a person is found guilty, he will be punishable with a prison term of one to five years and a fine not less than Rs 25,000. If the person who has been converted is a minor, a woman or a person belonging to the Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe, the jail term for the accused person will be between two and 10 years and the fine will be Rs 50,000 or above.

Experts and social activists have repeatedly said that these laws can be misused by the governments to target minority groups such as Muslims and Christians, according to The Wire.

Data by the United Christian Forum from March last year shows that there were at least 27 incidents of violence against Christians in 10 Indian states – Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Tamil Nadu and Odisha, Bihar, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Telangana and Goa.