Friday, 18 November 2022 | PNS | DEHRADUN
The Bharatiya Janata Party has stated that the Pradesh Congress Committee president’s objection to the cabinet approval to the proposal to make suitable amendments in the Uttarakhand Freedom of Religion (Amendment) Bill, 2022 is questionable.
The BJP State spokesman Suresh Joshi alleged that objecting to the stricter legal provisions to put a check on religious conversion by force or inducement shows that the Congress supports those who work to convert people. Issuing a statement on Thursday, Joshi said that incidents of religious conversions by force or inducement by missionaries, staunch members of the minority community and institutions have been coming to light here since before the creation of Uttarakhand State. Action has been taken in such instances during the terms of the BJP government. “The need for a stringent law was being felt to put a stop to such instances and instill the fear of the law in people who are involved in the illegal activity of religious conversion.
The State government headed by chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has done the work of meeting such public expectations. The issue was not a matter for concern for the Congress because it worries mainly about the votes from a particular community. Considering this, the Congress raising doubts at the cabinet approval shows that the cultural identity and religious purity of the people of Uttarakhand is not a priority for the Congress.Their main priority is appeasement,” said Joshi.
Responding to the doubts raised by the Congress regarding people being targeted, he further said that the target of the anti-conversion law will be only those people who take advantage of the simplicity or helplessness of people and use money and other inducements along with unethical pressure for illegal religious conversion activity.
