NEW DELHI, NOV 4: The first-ever Minister for Tribal Affairs, Juel Oram, appears to be torn between his own tribal identity and the compulsions of perhaps having to pursue the Sangh Parivar agenda which includes stopping of religious conversions and homogenisation of Hindu cultures.If he pays tribute to the Christian missionaries for giving the tribals access to education and health care, he is equally critical of them for using this goodwill to win them over to Christianity. He also scoffs at sceptics for suspecting that his ministry will be used as a tool to pursue the saffron agenda. Oram doesn't agree with the view that the BJP and its sister organisations are out to further this agenda. ``Why do you have these predetermined notions?'' he counters.Isn't he concerned that the BJP and other elements of the Sangh Parivar were largely seen as being behind the campaign against religious conversions, the murder of missionary Graham Staines in his home state of Orissa?``There is no denying the fact thatmissionaries deserve credit for giving tribals and other disadvantaged sections access to education and health care. They also have the right to preach their religion within the legal framework. But it is also true that missionaries have been resorting to conversions. The Staines' murder was a fallout of the friction created by the cultural aggression by the missionaries,'' he explains.
