INDIAN Prime Minister Narendra Modi said every individual in his country has the “undeniable right to retain or adopt” any faith. Modi who was accused of Gujarat riot in 2002 and was always known for his extreme religious views as leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party may have passed a new signal this time to the nation. It may be the message of a reformed politician giving priority to maintaining religious harmony and political stability in India to achieve prosperity for the nation. His remarks came in the wake of recent repeated attacks on Christians’ schools and churches in Delhi and other parts of India along with ‘forced conversion’ of Muslim families to Hindu religion. Modi came under severe criticism in Indian parliament on both issues. President Barack Obama also made his concerns known to the Indian Prime Minister during his recent visit to Delhi.
Modi in his statement as quoted by Kuldip Nayar in a syndicated article on Thursday said, “My government will ensure that there is complete freedom of faith and that everyone has the undeniable right to retain or adopt the religion of his or her choice without coercion or undue influence. My government will not allow any religious group, belonging to the majority or the minority to incite hatred against others, overtly or covertly.”
We are really delighted as a neighbour to hear him speaking this pragmatic way to remove fear and restore confidence in the religious minorities in India. It may also ensure the true nature of secular character of Indian Constitution that deals any citizen on equal footing. But skepticism still exists whether it signals a real ideological change.
As we know Prime Minister Modi was recently facing tense relation with Hindu religious group in matters of forced conversion. So he decided to table a bill in the parliament to make forced conversion from any religion to other illegal and punishable by law. But skeptics say the effectiveness of the new law may depend on how one would interpret a particular conversion case.
The powerful party may claim a forced conversion case as a willful conversion and thus may avoid the rule of law. We believe the making of the law is not enough; neutral application of the law may only restore confidence to India’s religious minorities. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken to right step and we believe it will help him avoid many wrong steps at the end.
