Choosing one’s religion is a social and legal right of citizens, as per the Indian Constitution. Still, the organisations who do their politics under cover of religion do not accept this. Dr. Mohan Bhagwat, the Sarsanghachalak of RSS, keeps stating, on one hand, that all people living in this country are Hindus and, on the other hand, he says that Hindu population is declining as many of them are being converted to Islam and Christianity. He further went on to say that Hindu couples should produce three children as declining population of Hindus in the country is worrisome.

It is contradictory that you call everybody Hindu and yet you call for Ghar Wapasi into Hinduism. Many studies have shown that the genetic structure of all communities in India is similar. As far as population genetics is concerned it is no indicator of one’s religion. The fact is that global migrations took place and determine the similarity of DNA amongst different religions. Just because DNA studies reveal many similarities, it cannot become an argument for leaving one’s religion of inheritance or choice and merging into the majority religious community.

Conversion Myths

The argument that Islam in India spread on the strength of sword of kings holds no water as the first Muslim population of India developed on Malabar Coast, Kerala. This was not due to the sword of the king, as there was no Muslim king in Kerala till 15th century when Tipu Sultan annexed it. The first mosque in India came up in the 7th century itself, Cheramaan Juma Mosque. Later while few conversions to Islam might have taken place due to coercion or allurement, the major conversions to Islam took place to escape the tyranny of caste system. It was not Kings who caused conversion, but it was under the influence of humanistic approach of Sufi saints that many converted to Islam. As Swami Vivekanand pointed out Islam came as a liberatory force for the low caste in India. Many victorious Muslim kings granted mercy to defeated Hindu kings if they agreed to accept Islam. This is a miniscule number. To say that only the method of worship has changed due to conversion amongst the converts is a travesty of truth. Muslims have their own places of worship, pilgrimage, holy books and identity. The claims of current Hindutva ideologues are at odds with progenitor of Hindu Nationalism, Savarkar, for whom Muslims were a different nation.

As far as Christianity is concerned, it entered India in 52 CE with St. Thomas setting up Churches on Malabar Coast. Today their share in total population is a mere 2.3 per cent (Census 2011). Their work in remote Adivasis areas has got them come converts, but the overall share of 2.3 per cent in a period of close to two millennia does not show use of any allurement or force. Surely some small denominations amongst Christian religion do claim that they want to convert, but the major denominations do not convert unless the person opts voluntarily for this.

Roots of Ghar Wapasi

As communal politics in India developed, initially it was Arya Samaj that tried to convert Muslims to Hinduism. Arya Samaj started ‘Shuddhi’. At the same time Tablighi Jamat started Tanzim (organisation) and Tablighi (propaganda/religious proselytisation) movement in North India. Shuddhi held that those who converted to Islam had become impure and they needed to be brought back after performing purification rituals. Tanzim regarded that some Muslims have forgotten Islamic norms and they need to be taught this.

The present Ghar Wapasi campaign was started four decades ago mainly in Adivasi/Dalit areas. This was also done in the slums and aimed to convert Muslims to Hinduism. In Adivasis areas, religious rituals, like giving bath in hot springs along with performance of havans (Hindu rituals) was done, after which they declared that the person has become Hindu. One example of this came to light in Vednagar, Agra in 2014. Some 350 Muslim pavement dwellers, who were primarily rag pickers and destitutes were told to come after taking bath. The promise was that they would be given BPL cards and ration cards. When they reached there, they were made to participate in havan and after that they were declared to be Hindus. This was organized by Bajrang Dal and Hindu Jan Jagruti Samit, both affiliated to RSS. Amongst Muslims and Christians, the poor section is being targeted like this.  

It is in this direction that many states have introduced ‘Freedom of Religion’ Acts which ensure that people can’t choose their religion. In many of these laws, one needs permission from district collectors for the same. Many pastors and priests have been beaten up on the charge of doing conversion work. On the eve of Christmas many of the traders selling Christmas ware on the pavements were beaten up on the charge of doing conversion work. On the pretext of conversion work, the most horrific act was that of burning alive of Pastor Staines with his two minor sons in Keonjhar, Orissa.

Kerala Story 2

Bringing to focus Ghar Wapasi is a revival of a divisive game being played by communal organisations and its affiliates. Ghar Wapasi is a forcible conversion through intimidation. Jamiat-e-Hind’s Maulana Madani strongly condemned this view saying they are Muslims and will remain Muslims. On similar lines, the campaign of love jihad has been going on. In this direction, the trailer of Kerala Story 2, a very communal film for propaganda, presents as if there is an organised attempt to promote Muslim youth to woo Hindu girls for marriage and conversion. In Kerala, this was investigated by police and found to be false. The trailer shows all this in a very distorted and hateful fashion. This Kerala Story 2 is yet another film made for propaganda purposes and its crudity is despicable. Like the Kerala Story which came out earlier, this is also based on imaginary data, far away from reality. Hadiya (Akhila who converted to Islam) case showed how fake is the narrative of allurement of Hindu girls by Muslim youth, as she said it was her free choice.

This film will be an add-on to the divisive politics of dominating communal organisation, taking our country down towards a very illiberal society where the basic principles of fraternity are violated to the core. These calls for ‘Ghar Wapasi’ and films like these are a total violation of values of Indian Constitution and Indian ethos of syncretic culture which was the basis of India’s emotional unity.


Ram Puniyani is an Indian author and former professor of biomedical engineering at IIT Bombay. The views are personal.