Majority population will become minority one day: High Court on conversions

Mangalore Today News Network

Allahabad, July 2, 2024: The Allahabad High Court has expressed grave concerns over rising religious conversions occurring during gatherings and warned that if such a trend continued, the majority population of the country will become a minority one day.

Justice Rohit Ranjan Agarwal made the observation while dismissing the bail plea of one Kailash, accused of converting a group of Hindus from a village to Christianity.

"If this process is allowed to be carried out, the majority population of this country would be in minority one day, and such religious congregation should be immediately stopped where the conversion is taking place and changing the religion of citizens of India," the court said, according to Bar and Bench.

The High Court ordered an immediate ban on religious congregations where conversations of individuals are taking place, saying that such activities directly violated the right to religious freedom as enshrined in Article 25 of the Constitution.

Article 25 states that individuals are free to believe in any religion, worship and propagate their religion, subject to some restrictions.

The High Court said propagation meant to promote religion and did not mean to convert any person from his religion to another. It said it took note of instances of the poor being misled and converted to Christianity in various parts of Uttar Pradesh.

Considering the seriousness of the conversation allegations, the court refused to grant bail to Kailash, who belongs to Maudaha in Hamirpur district.

One Ramkali Prajapati filed an FIR against Kailash after the latter took his mentally ill brother to Delhi for a week. He said he would get his brother treated and send him back to the village, but the accused did not return, the FIR said.

When Kailash returned, he took all the people of the village to an event organised in Delhi where all were allegedly converted to Christianity. According to the FIR, Prajapati’s brother was offered money in exchange for his conversion.