UDAIGARH (ALIRAJPUR): Udaigarh police in Alirajpur district on Sunday booked a Christian priest and two women in two different cases for targeting and converting family members of particularly vulnerable tribal group to Christianity.
The first case was lodged by Ikesh of Jambukheda against Christian priest Dilip Ransingh Vasuniya. In his complaint, Ikesh alleged that Vasunia lured his brother Ishwar Dudwe into accepting Christianity by promising financial help and motorcycle. Following this, Ishwar stopped following his own religious rituals and started worshiping Jesus.
Police booked Vasunia, under relevant sections of the Madhya Pradesh Freedom of Religion Ordinance, 2020. This is the first case reported in the tribal-dominated Alirajpur after the enactment of the Act. The priest managed to flee from the spot.
In another case, Udaigarh police acting on the complaint lodged by Birbal, son of Majiya Dudwe, registered a case against Bhopal’s Sheela, wife of Clement Santiago and Betul resident Bhuribai, wife of Ajay Singh for using derogatory words with the intention of inciting people of Hindu tribes and other organisations sitting on dharna at night. The duo was arrested by the police and produced in Alirajpur special court from where they were sent to jail.
Earlier late on Sunday evening, a chaotic situation prevailed outside Udaigarh police station here after a large number of Hindu Janjati Sangathan members gathered outside it demanding police intervention in an alleged conversion during a meeting held in the name of Changai Sabha at a church in Jammukheda village.
When the police reached the spot, a Christian priest escaped from the site. Police recovered a large quantity of missionary literature from the spot and brought about two dozen men and women present there to the police station.
Hindu Janjati Sangathan’s district president Dilip Singh Chauhan claimed that the Christian missionaries have been practising conversion in tribal-dominated Alirajpur and Jhabua area for long. The Madhya Pradesh government has taken a good step towards preventing conversion by enacting a religious freedom law. The government should also bring an ordinance to deprive converts of reservation.
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