"Majority will become minority...": HC raises concerns over religious conversion gatherings

The Allahabad High Court has raised concerns over religious conversion gatherings, warning that if unlawful conversions continue, the majority population in India could eventually become a minority. The court made these remarks while hearing a case in Hamirpur district, Uttar Pradesh, involving allegations of illegal religious conversions.

According to a report in TOI, Justice Rohit Ranjan Agarwal dismissed the bail plea of an accused named Kailash under the UP Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2021. The case involved allegations that Kailash took villagers from Hamirpur to Delhi under the guise of a 'well-being' gathering and converted them to Christianity, with some not returning home.

"In the instant case, there are serious allegations against the applicant by the informant that her brother, along with several others, were taken from their village to attend a gathering in New Delhi and converted to Christianity. The brother of the informant never returned," the court said.


The court warned, "If this process is allowed to be carried out, the majority population of this country would be in the minority one day, and such religious congregations should be immediately stopped where conversion is taking place and changing the religion of citizens of India."

The news agency ANI quoted the high court bench noting, "It has come to the notice of this court in several cases that unlawful activity of conversion of people of SC/ST caste and other castes including economically poor persons into Christianity is being done at rampant pace throughout Uttar Pradesh."

The court also remarked that Article 25 of the Constitution of India guarantees 'freedom of conscience and free profession, practice, and propagation of religion' but does not explicitly sanction conversion from one faith to another, as reported by Bar and Bench.

The court clarified that while "Propagation" means to promote religion, it does not imply converting individuals from their current religion to another.

Furthermore, the court noted that there is widespread unlawful conversion of people from SC/ST and other castes, including economically disadvantaged individuals, to Christianity happening at a rapid rate across Uttar Pradesh.

According to the FIR lodged at Maudaha police station in Hamirpur district in 2023, Ramphal, the brother of the complainant Ramkali Prajapati, was reportedly taken to Delhi by Kailash to participate in a social gathering. Several other villagers were also allegedly taken to similar gatherings, where they were all purportedly converted to Christianity.

The complainant was assured by the accused that her mentally ill brother would receive treatment and return to the village within a week, as per PTI's report. However, when this did not materialise, she questioned Kailash about her brother's whereabouts but did not receive a satisfactory response. Subsequently, she approached the police with her concerns.

Inputs from TOI