New Delhi, 27 March (H.S.):

BJP MP Sumer Singh Solanki raised the issue of religious conversions in tribal areas during Friday's session in the Rajya Sabha. He stated that while everyone in the country has the right to religious freedom, conversions through deceit, force, or inducement are legal crimes.

Solanki argued that the Constitution should be amended to stop such conversions, with those from the tribal community who convert losing their reservation benefits and being delisted entirely. He said these individuals are encroaching on the rights of the tribal society.

Several states have enacted laws to curb conversions, yet there is a pressing need for a stringent nationwide law to protect tribal rights and cultural identity, Solanki asserted. He warned that conversions have become a threat to national security, demanding serious deliberation.

The tribal community has long adhered to Sanatan Dharma, culture, and traditions, but conversions now endanger their identity, which should concern us all, he added.

Today conversions happen through trickery and intimidation, he charged – offering economic lures, jobs, medical aid, education, spreading superstition, or via marriages and mass events that qualify as organised crime. This is happening across multiple states, part of a conspiracy to slowly erase tribal culture, traditions, rituals, worship practices, and identity.

Several social organisations and tribal representatives have demanded action to halt conversions.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar