The head of Dharam Jagran Samiti, a western Uttar Pradesh-based Hindutva group, Rajeshwar Singh, said on Friday that the “biggest-ever” conversion camp to be held in Aligarh on December 25 would be held at “any cost.”
His assertion comes even as Avdhesh Tiwari, ADM, Aligarh city, denied getting any application from the right-wing group for permission to organise the programme.
Meanwhile, several organisations in Aligarh termed the “ghar vapsi” programme an attempt to “disturb” communal harmony in the city, which is just recovering from the controversy of the BJP forcibly trying to organise the birth anniversary of Raja Mahendra Pratap Singh on the AMU campus.
Mr. Singh earlier announced that 4,000 persons, including 2,000 Muslims, from different parts of western UP, would “reconvert” to Hinduism in a programme likely to be held on Christmas.
“We would not let the ‘ghar vapsi’ programme be affected by anybody. It doesn’t matter if we don’t get the permission of the local administration to organise it, because we will go ahead with our plan at any cost. If the need arises, I will organise the event on private farms,” Mr. Singh told The Hindu over phone. He said the Samajwadi Party government might pose roadblocks.
“We don’t want to go against law and order and we wish to organise the camps in a peaceful manner. Even if the State government tries to stop it, we won’t let the event to be affected,” maintained Mr. Singh, who declared himself to be a pracharak.
Millat Bedari Muhim, an Aligarh-based outfit, working in the areas of education and communal harmony has written to the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, asking him to ensure peace in the city.
Jasim Mohammad of the Millat Bedari Muhim told The Hindu over phone that the camp would only make the city “vulnerable” to communal disturbances.
