Aaj Thak - VHP reiterates demand on end to conversion
Bhubaneswar, October 24: The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) has demanded that Pope John Paul II declare a stop to conversions in the country during his visit next month. "A tribal leaders' delegation will call on the Pontiff after his arrival in New Delhi to urge him to use his influence to end all efforts to convert people through inducement, deceit and threat," VHP's international vice-president Giriraj Kishore said here on Saturday.
"If the Pope is coming here as head of state he is not expected to attend any religious congregation. But if he is visiting as the head of the Catholics, we urge the government to extend to him the least possible protocol," he said.
Alleging that the church had plans to evangelise and convert the whole country in the near future, he said it was taking advantage of the lack of education among the tribals. "This (conversions) is creating tension in the society... The church activities amount to onslaught on Indian culture," he said, adding while Article 25(1) of the Constitution guarantees everyone the right to propagate his or her religion it does not provide the right to convert.
"The church has been taking unfair advantage of the Constitutional provision and the whole thing has emerged as a big problem for the country," he said, alleging huge funds sent to India from other countries, mainly the US, Germany, Holland and Italy, are being used to convert people. "We demand that the use of these funds be monitored and the Centre ensures that it is not used for conversions," he added.......
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