Villagers protesting against the installation of a temporary Church in village (left); Representative Image of Church (right)
On May 13, Hindu activists organised a ‘Jan Jagran’ rally in protest of the illegal conversion and construction of an impermanent Church in Ghoraha village under Nandghat police station limits of Bemetara district in Chhattisgarh.
As per the media reports, the villagers have been in anguish over reports of illegal conversions and the construction of a temporary Church in the house of one of the villagers who is said to have embraced Christianity. It has also been reported that one of the villagers identified as Ageshwar Verma has been organising ‘Changai Sabha’ (Christian prayer ceremony) at his place over the years where locals have been lured to embrace Christianity.
Notably, Ageshwar had already been warned by the villagers for his suspicious activities in the past, to which he had assured them not to cultivate it anymore, however on May 14, the villagers found that Ageshwar has built a temporary Church at his place and has sought police protection for its inauguration. . After his secret was revealed, a group of villagers along with Former Minister Dayaldas Baghel rushed to the police station and demanded action.
Following the protest, a police team then visited the village and took an undertaking as assurance from Ageshwar that he will never organise any form of religious gathering at its place in future. Following the assurance, villageres ended their protests.
The villagers at the protests, recited ‘Hanuman Chalisa’ on May 13, people from the Hindu organisations and nearby villages also took part in this peaceful protests. Those who participated in the march include former minister Dayalsad Baghel. He reminded the villagers of the sacrifice made by their ancestors and family for the village saying, “One should not forget its roots at any cost; one’s ancestors cannot be replaced. To protect Dharma, the youths should work like Jamwant”.
Speaking with the Organiser, Baghel said that ” There is not a single Christian family in the village even Ageshwar the man behind all this is too a Hindu on papers, that is illegal, rampant conversion activities are going in the nearby villages like Bikhampura and surrounding regions. Sespite of all this the police and administration have left no stone unturned to protect the man.”
“Even on May 13, when we took out a march in the village, there were heavy arrangements of the police who ensured that roads were blocked. All we want is that illegal conversion should be stopped, and if anyone embraces any other religion, he should not avail the benefits of conversion,” added Baghel.
Let us tell you that the tribal heartland of Chhattisgarh has a long history of illegal conversion promoted by Christian missionaries. Recently, the State has also witnessed several communal fissures between the local Hindu Vanvasi community and the evangelists in the Bastar region.
The notable recent altercation was triggered when a mob of around 200 evangelists attacked the local Vanvasi community for protesting against the rampant illegal conversion by the mission-backed converted Christians. The clash took place in the Ghoraha village of Narayanpur area in the state. The clash resulted in a wide-scale protest by the Vanvasi community in the whole Bastar region. The Vanvasi community have also alleged the Baghel-led Government for keeping a blind eye on the misdeeds of evangelists.
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