‘Ghar wapsi’, a reconversion drive, is back on the agenda of Hindutva groups working in western Uttar Pradesh but this time the strategy would be different.
Instead of much publicised attempt to convert the minority communities, the right-wing groups are planning to keep a low profile and start a fresh campaign mid-February onwards in western Uttar Pradesh. The areas on their radar are villages in Gorakhpur, Shahjahanpur, Hathras, Meerut, Aligarh, Bijnore, Agra districts.
According to reliable sources in the Sangh affiliates, there was a possibility that Rajeshwar Singh, RSS pointsman for conversion drive will be brought back albeit with a low profile.
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The RSS-affiliated groups, especially the Dharam Jagaran Samanvay Samiti (DJSS) which is active in western UP, has been asked to maintain a low profile but spread its cadres in the interior rural areas of these district and identify families, mainly Christians and Muslims.
The renewed strategy comes after the RSS had to send Rajeshwar Singh of DJSS, on leave following his publicised conversion campaign in Aligarh on Christmas last year and his frequent controversial statements.
The RSS had to ask the DJSS to cancel the programme scheduled for Christmas as it had become source of major embarrassment for the Narendra Modi government and had led to the Opposition cornering the Government in the Parliament.
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According to the new strategy the DJSS would avoid converting people in public functions as was done during its failed attempts in December last year.
The entire DJSS brass has been asked not to talk to the media in order to avoid fresh controversy.
"The Pracharaks would convince individual families to come under the fold of Hinduism and once they agree they would be converted inside their homes as it saves us from lots of unnecessary trouble from the hostile state government," said a senior DJSS leader on condition of anonymity.
"Why to court controversy when the work can be done in much more efficient way by being silent about it. We have been asked to strictly avoid taking media," added the senior DJSS leader.