Gujarat Freedom of Religion (Amendment) Bill 2006--GRANDPLAN FOR INCORPORATING MINORITIES IN TO HINDU FOLD

THIS PIECE OF NEWS APPEARED IN NATIONAL NEWSPAPERS ON SEP 20 2006

Anti-conversion Bill amendment passed

Express News Service Wednesday, September 20, 2006

Gandhinagar, September 19: AMID noisy protests from the Opposition, the controversial amendment on conversions in the Gujarat Freedom of Religion Act 2003 was passed in the State Legislative Assembly here by a voice vote on Tuesday.

The Anti-Conversion Act passed earlier did not have clarity on what forced conversion means and to whom should it apply. Under the amendment Bill, a person need not seek permission in case he/she is converting from one sect to another of the same religion.


What attracted the Opposition ire was an elaboration describing Jainism and Buddhism as denominations of Hinduism, like Shia and Sunnis are of Islam or Catholicism and Protestantism are of Christianity. Former Home Minister Gordhan Zadaphia even demanded that Sikhs be included as a Hindu sect.

Leader of Opposition Arjun Modhvadia said that as per SC orders given earlier — under the Indian Minority Community Act and National Commission for Minority Act — Jainism and Buddhism are independent religions. The Bill is against the Constitution, he added. To this, Law Minister Ashok Bhatt said the Bill’s provisions were well within the definition of religion as per Article 25 of the Constitution.



Minister of State for Home Amit Shah said the Congress was creating division within the Hindu society by trying to separate these religions from the Hindu-fold.

Arjun Modhvadia berated the Government for providing little debate on an important political issue. “Last time, you passed the Bill after the Opposition was suspended (for raising the issue of the assassination of BJP leader Haren Pandya). This time, after sitting over an amendment for more than three years, you cannot allow a five-day debate. The intention is politics of religion,” Modhvadia said.

Modhvadia’s claim that “root-cause” of Dalit neglect is prime reason for conversions attracted strong protests from the BJP. Ministers I K Jadeja, Ashok Bhatt and Ramanlal Vora jumped to their feet, saying if the Dalits were not empowered, it was because of 50 long years of Congress rule. ‘‘We would change their condition, but for the time being, this law is needed to stop conversions of poor and illiterate people based on allurement, cheating or fear,” said Shah.

Closing his arguments, Modhvadia said that one’s faith was a private affair, and Government had no business legislating it. Picking up from here, BJP’s Zadaphia said the Bill was needed to make clear the thin line between definitions of religion and sects.


Provisions of the Freedom of Religion Act, 2003
* Makes forcible religious conversion a cognizable offence punishable by law. Punishment for those found guilty can be upto 3 years or Rs 50,000. In case a minor, SC or ST is converted, the period is upto 4 years and fine is Rs 1 lakh.
* Defines allurement, conversion, force, fraudulent means and minor for the purposes of the Act
* Prior permission of District Magistrate is mandatory in case a conversion is planned. The convert also has to submit a prescribed form to the District Magistrate after the conversion ceremony is over

http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=201958


AUTHORS COMMENT


DID YOU EVER THOUGHT OVER THE IMPLICATIONS OF THIS AMENDMENT? EVEN A PERSON WITH A CASUAL INSIGHT WILL UNDERSTAND THAT THIS LAW SIMPLY MEANS THAT IT WILL BE IMPOSSIBLE TO CONVERT FROM HINDUISM TO ISLAM OR FROM HINDUISM TO CHRISTIANITY OR FROM CHRISTIANITY TO ISLAM, BUT CONVERSION FROM HINDUISM TO JAINISM OR BHUDDISM AND CONVERSION FROM JAINISM OR BHUDDISM TO HINDUISM WILL BE PERMITTED.THIS SAID, BUT WHAT IS THE MENTALITY THAT IS ACTUALLY BEHIND THIS LEGISLATION .ANYBODY WHO IS EVEN LIGHTLY INFORMED OF THE IDEOLOGY OF RSS KNOWS VERY WELL THAT THEY CONSIDER INDIAN RELIGIONS TO BE WITH IN THE FOLD OF HINDUISM AND WANT TO INCOPERATE THEM IN TO THE FOLD OF HINDUISM .THIS IS THE OUT COME OF DISEASED BRAHAMINICAL MENTALITY WHICH AIMS TO CONVERT THE ENTIRE HUMANITY IN TO THEIR SLAVES. IN THE BYGONE AGE THIS GAVE RISE TO THE SEGREGATION AND PERSECUTION OF MULTITUDES OF INNOCENT HUMANBEINGS IN THE GRAB OF CAST SYSTEM .WE KNOW VERY WELL HOW MANY CONVERSIONS TAKE PLACE TO JAINISM AND BHUDDISM IN INDIA .SO THE QUESTION OF HINDUS CONVERTING TO THESE RELIGIONS DOES NOT EXIST.LIKEWISE WE EVEN KNOW THAT THESE RELIGIONS ARE NOT LIKELY TO COME IN THE FOLD OF HINDUISM GIVEN THERE FREE WILL.THEN ARE WE TO TAKE MODI AND COMPANY TO BE A BUNCH OF FOOLISH PEOPLE .THEN WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE STRAIGHT FORWARD, THE WAY HAS BEEN OPENED FOR THE FORCED AND ENMASS CONVERSION OF THESE COMMUNITIES IN BRAHAMANICAL FOLD, AT LEAST LEGALLY FOR THE TIME BEING .THIS IS BEING PLANNED AS A PRECURSOR FOR THE ULTIMATE CONVERSION OF ALL THE INHABITANTS OF THIS COUNTRY IN TO MODERN DAY SHUDRAS TO BE SERVANTS OF BRAHAMAN DEVAS.