Home Minister Rajnath Singh has hinted at the possibility of an Anti-Conversion Bill being tabled in Parliament, provided a consensus evolved among political parties, social and religious organizations in the country against the practice of conversion.
Inaugurating a pilgrims’ conference at the 82nd Sivagiri Pilgrimage at Sivagiri near Varkala, the final resting place of social reformer Sree Narayana Guru in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday, Mr. Singh said there would be no need for any conversions, either by force or by means of enticement, in this country if each person followed his or her own ‘dharma’ or practices of each person’s religion.
It was up to the political parties, social organizations and religious institutions in the country to evolve a consensus on the issue, against conversion, which could pave the way for an Anti-Conversion Bill in the Parliament, he said.
Citing Sree Narayana Guru’s teachings on spiritual progress being a necessity on par with material progress, Mr. Singh said the Guru had pressed for a developmental model that focussed on both material and spiritual progress.
“We too believe in a similar model,” he said, stating that efforts were on to develop India not just as an economic super power, but as a spiritual super power as well, with the ultimate aim being ‘restoring’ India’s position as the ‘jagathguru’, the Guru of the whole world.
