Majority will become minority unless conversion during religious congregations is stopped: Allahabad HC

Ramkali Prajapati, the complainant in the case and a native of Hamirpur, said Kailash took her brother Rampal, who has mental illness, to Delhi last year to attend a “social gathering and ceremony for well-being”. Kailash allegedly promised Prajapati her brother would be treated and return within a week. When her brother did not come back after a week, Prajapati asked Kailash about her brother but did not get a satisfactory reply.

Ramkali alleged that many people from her neighbourhood were taken to the social gathering and converted to Christianity.

Kailash’s lawyer informed the court that Rampal was not converted to Christianity, nor was he Christian. He said that Ramphal had attended a Christian gathering along with several others, adding that Sonu Paster, who led the gathering, had already been granted bail.

Passing the order, Justice Rohit Ranjan Agarwal said, “This Court, prima facie, finds that the applicant is not entitled for bail. Hence, the bail application of the applicant involved in the aforesaid case crime is, hereby, rejected.”

The court stated in its order that the word “propagation” means to promote, but not convert any person from his religion to another religion. “In the instant case, there are serious allegations against the applicant by the informant that her brother was taken away from the village to attend the gathering of well-being at New Delhi and along with him number of persons from the said village were also taken there, and they are being converted into Christianity. Brother of the informant never returned to the village.”

The court added, “Statements recorded by the I.O. of various other persons clearly reveal, at this stage, that the applicant, Kailash, had been taking away people to attend the religious congregation held at New Delhi, where they are being converted into Christianity.”

The court further observed, “If this process is allowed to be carried out, the majority population of this country would be in a minority one day, and such religious congregations should be immediately stopped where the conversion is taking place and changing religion of citizen of India.

“It is against the Constitutional mandate of Article 25 of the Constitution of India, which does not provide for religious conversion, it only provides freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion. It has come into notice of this Court in several cases that unlawful activity of conversion of people of SC/ST castes and other castes including economically poor persons into Christianity is being done at rampant pace throughout the State of Uttar Pradesh.”