Goa CM spreading "misinformation" on Fr Cedric Prakash's critique of Gujarat's anti-conversion law

Parrikar

In a surprise move, Goa chief minister Manohar Parrikar has sharply criticized Gujarat-based Jesuit human rights activist Father Cedric Prakash, wondering why the latter should go to Goa and address people there, telling them about lack of religious freedom in Gujarat. Invited by the Catholic Association of Goa (CAG) and others about three weeks ago, Prakash has hit back saying that he is a “free citizen” therefore has “the right to travel anywhere in the country and speak or address any group.”
In a statement, issued from his office in Ahmedabad, Prakash has said, “The very fact that members of the BJP can even think of raising such questions portends ill for the future of the country. It clearly shows their fascist mindset. In the same breath, these very people have no guts to ask why Modi is seeking election from Varanasi or Advani from Gandhinagar, when both are not residents of these constituencies.”
Addressing an election rally on April 8, Parrikar directly referred to Prakash’s addresses at several meetings in Goa, organized by CAG. Parrikar said, while Prakash was talking about insecure minorities, the priest was “safe” in Ahmedabad for the last 12 years. Prakash in his rejoinder said, “The government of the day is meant to protect the life and property of every single citizen; the police and the other arms of law and order are meant to help the Government in the execution of this responsibility.”
Prakash added, “Unfortunately, the world knows that the Gujarat government abdicated this responsibility in 2002 which even prompted the then Prime Minister AB Vajpayee to tell Modi that he should practice raj dharma. Early in 1998-99, when the Sangh Parivar attacked the Christians of the Dang districts and other parts of South Gujarat, Vajpayee flew down to say that this should not happen to anyone, anywhere in India”.
Prakash underlined, “Being safe and secure in Gujarat is a matter of perception; thanks to the Central government; there are mechanisms to ensure my safety and security. But this doesn’t mean I’m not intimidated or harassed or threatened.”
Prakash particularly took strong exception to Parrikar’s effort to justify Gujarat’s anti-conversion law, passed in 2003. He particularly took exception to Parikkar’s reference to fact that the Congress first brought the anti-conversion law in Madhya Pradesh during the tenure of SC Shukla, hence there was no point in criticizing the Modi government for a “similar law” in Gujarat. The Jesuit human rights activist said, while he did not justify the Madhya Pradesh law, there was a fundamental difference.
Prakash said, Parikkar was “misinforming” people about Gujarat’s Freedom of Religion Act, 2003. Calling the law as a “draconian piece of legislation”, Prakash said, as against the Madhya Pradesh lw, which just make it obligatory for the person converted to just inform the officialdom about conversion, the Gujarat law “necessitates that any person (adult) wanting to change his or her religion to first seek the permission of the district collector”.
Not just this. In the Gujarat law, Prakash said, “the collector will first have to see if there is any force, or a fraud or an ‘allurement’ (which is material gratification or otherwise). So if the collector feels that “you becoming a better person” is allurement, he or she can deny you the permission”. He added, “As recently as February 9, 2014, the Gir Somnath SDM filed a complaint against a woman for converting to Islam ‘illegally’.”
Prakash further said, all this is over and above “any amounts of forms to be filled out when asking for permission.” In fact, “one also has to provide complete details of all those who will be present at say your ‘Baptismal ceremony’ while applying for permission.”

---

Click HERE to read full statement of Fr Cedric Prakash

Comments

No to free thought? How Gujarat's private universities are cowing down their students

"Don't protest"—that's the message private universities across Gujarat seem to be conveying to their students. A senior professor told me that students at the university where he teaches are required to sign an undertaking promising not to engage in protests. "They simply sign the undertaking and hand it over to the university authorities," he said.

Beyond the Sattvik plate: Prof Anil Gupta's take on food, ethics, and sustainability

I was pleasantly surprised to receive a rather lengthy comment (I don't want to call it a rejoinder) on my blog post about the Sattvik Food Festival, held near the Sola Temple in Ahmedabad late last year. It came from no less a person than Anil Gupta, Professor Emeritus at the Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad (IIM-A), under whose guidance this annual event was held.

'Potentially lethal, carcinogenic': Global NGO questions India refusing to ban white asbestos

Associated with the Fight Inequality Alliance, a global movement that began in 2016 to "counter the concentration of power and wealth among a small elite", claiming to have members in the United Kingdom, South Africa, Kenya, Zambia, the Philippines, and Denmark, the advocacy group Confront Power appears all set to intensify its campaign against India as "the world’s largest asbestos importer".

In lieu of tribute to Pritish Nandy, said to be instrumental in collapse of Reliance-controlled daily

It is widely reported that Pritish Nandy , journalist, author, animal activist, and politician, has passed away. While it is customary to pay tributes to a departing soul—and I, too, have joined those who have posted heartfelt condolences on social media—I cannot forget the way he treated me when he was editor of the Reliance-controlled Business and Political Observer (BPO), for which I had been working informally in Moscow.

Shyam Benegal's Mathan a propaganda film that supported 'system'? No way

A few days ago, I watched Manthan, a Shyam Benegal movie released in 1976. If I remember correctly, the first time I saw this movie was with Safdar Hashmi, one of the rare young theater icons who was brutally murdered in January 1989. Back then, having completed an M.A. in English Literature from Delhi University in 1975, we would often move around together.

Sattvik Food Festival: Shouldn't one question notion of purity, cultural exclusion in food choices?

Recently, I visited the Sattvik Food Festival, an annual event in Ahmedabad organized by Anil Gupta, professor emeritus at the Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad (IIM-A). I have known Prof. Gupta since 1993, when I sought an appointment to meet him a few months after joining The Times of India in Ahmedabad—one reason why I have always been interested in the activities he is involved in.

A conman, a demolition man: How 'prominent' scribes are defending Pritish Nandy

How to defend Pritish Nandy? That’s the big question some of his so-called fans seem to ponder, especially amidst sharp criticism of his alleged insensitivity during his journalistic career. One such incident involved the theft and publication of the birth certificate of Masaba Gupta, daughter of actor Neena Gupta, in the Illustrated Weekly of India, which Nandy was editing at the time. He reportedly did this to uncover the identity of Masaba’s father.

To be or not to be Sattvik: Different communities' differing notions of purity and fasting

This is a continuation of my last blog on Sattvik food. When talking about Sattvik, there is a tendency to overlook what it may mean to different sections of people around the world. First, let me redefine Sattvik: it means having a "serene, balanced, and harmonious mind or attitude." Derived from the Sanskrit word sattva, it variously means "pure, essence, nature, vital, energy, clean, conscious, strong, courage, true, honest, and wise." How do people achieve this so-called purity? Among Gujarati Hindus, especially those from the so-called upper castes who are vegetarians, one common way is fasting. On fasting days, such as agiyarash —the 11th day of the lunar cycle in the Vedic calendar—my close relatives fast but consume milk, fruit juices, mangoes, grapes, bananas, almonds, pistachios, and potato-based foods, including fried items. Another significant fasting period is adhik maas. During this time, many of my relatives "fast" by eating only a single me...

Challenging patriarchy? Adopting maternal and marital surnames: Resistance continues

Anandiben Patel The other day, I was talking with a group of family friends. The discussion revolved around someone very close to me who had not changed her official name in documents, including her Aadhaar and passport, after her marriage. However, on social media and within her husband's family, she had adopted her husband's surname as a suffix to her own. I mentioned that there is a growing trend—though not yet widespread—where women prefer to retain their maiden names or add their maiden surnames alongside their husband's surname. Another emerging trend is where men choose to add their mother's name, or even their wife's name, to their own. This revelation surprised my family friends.

Search This Blog