Haryana is all set to become the ninth state in the country with an anti-conversion law, aimed at protecting poor Hindus from the Christian and Muslim conversion mafia. The Haryana government is set to bring a bill against religious conversion by force, said Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar
“While one has the right to adopt any religion, conversion by force, inducement, etc. are not tolerable. The Right to Freedom of Religion Bill will be brought in which there will be provisions against conversion by misrepresentation, force, undue influence, coercion, inducement, marriage, or any fraudulent means,” said Manohar Lal Khattar, Chief Minister of the state.
Vishwa Hindu Parishad has been complaining about atrocities on Hindu community, especially Dalits, in the Nuh district of Haryana, formerly known as Mewat. Nuh is a Muslim majority district in Southern Haryana with around 90 percent population being followers of Islam and the rest being Hindu.
After the report on atrocities on Hindus in the Muslim majority district, the government constituted public committees to probe the claims. The two committees- one on the general condition of Hindus in the district and the other by Haryana Valmiki Sabha on the condition of Dalits- found that Nuh has become “graveyard” for Dalits and there is “no difference between Pakistan and Mewat”.
The reports said that Hindu temples in the area are being illegally occupied by Muslims for mosque constructions and cattle wealth is also not safe. “The cattle wealth of Hindus is also not safe. In particular, cow progeny is grabbed hold of, slaughtered, and eaten up. In government offices where there are lots of Muslim officers, a hateful attitude towards Hindus is adopted,” reads the report.
After that Khattar visited Nuh and ensured that Hindus of the region would be protected by the state. CM Khattar said, “Strict actions are being considered to be taken against those involved in forced conversions”. Also, a board will be created looking after “religious assets of Hindus in areas where they are a minority” to protect the people according to the demand in the area.
Orissa became the first state to pass anti-conversion law back in 1967, followed by Madhya Pradesh (1968) and Arunachal Pradesh (1978). These states were followed by Chhattisgarh and Gujarat, which passed such laws in the early 2000s. Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Jharkhand also passed such laws later.
Forced religious conversion had become a big business for foreign-funded NGOs by the time the Modi government came to power. Modi government has tightened the noose on religious conversion through tightened FCRA norms. The introduction of FCRA has hit the religious conversion industry in India really hard as NGOs indulging in religious conversions in the garb of charity work have been severely affected. The FCRA norms now require NGO staff to receive foreign funds to declare that they were not prosecuted or convicted for converting the faith of any person.