Aligarh: A religious conversion ceremony in Aligarh planned for December 25 was called off today, hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi warned his MPs not to cross the “Laxman Rekha” with their controversial comments.
The programme for December 25 has been postponed,” said Rajeshwar Singh of Dharm Jagran Samiti, a group allegedly linked to the BJP’s ideological mentor Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). . Western UP-based Hindutva group, Dharm Jagran Samiti, on Tuesday said “the proposed ‘ghar wapsi’ (conversion ceremony) planned for December 25 has been called off.
Satya Prakash Nauman, district president, Dharm Jagran Samiti, however did not speak on the reason behind the cancellation. The outfit had stoked controversy after it announced a mass conversion ceremony at a local college in Aligarh on Christmas.
The BJP was also dragged into the controversy after its MP Yogi Adityanath had said that he will also attend the event. Adityanath said justified re-conversion to Hinduism if people were willing.
The party had, however, distanced itself from the programme. Its district president Devraj Singh had said: “We are not organising this ceremony but if the organisers including the Bajrang Dal seek our help on this score, we will certainly do whatever we can to help them.”
The government has been under attack from a united Opposition ever since the conversion of 57 Muslim families in Agra last week, in an event allegedly organized by the Dharm Jagran Samiti and the Bajrang Dal, another group linked to the RSS. The man at the centre of the event, Nand Kishore Valmiki, was arrested yesterday.
Bureau Report
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