In a ‘Gharwapasi’ event organised by Hindu Jagran Manch and Vishwa Hindu Parishad in Tripura’s Kailashshahar, 98 Christians were converted back to the fold of Hinduism. According to the reports, 98 Adivasis of 23 families were originally Hindus but were lured into Christianity after they lost their jobs in 2010.
A holy pyre was put up and elaborate rituals were carried out as a part of ‘Gharwapasi’ at around 180 Km away from the state capital Agartala, in the town of Kailashshahar to complete the reconversion of the Tribals.
The Hindu Jagran Manch Tripura Unit president Uttam Dey claimed that most of the Tribals were tea garden workers and were converted to Christianity in 2010. They all used to work in the Sonamukhi tea plantation in Unakoti district. After the closure of the plantation, they were lured to convert into Christianity. He also claimed that most people belong to the Orao and Munda tribes from Bihar and Jharkhand.
The Vedic rituals and Yagna was reportedly carried out by Chandrakanta Singha, a Vedic scholar and President of the local Hindu organisation Gayatri Kunja.
One of the members of the Tribal community identified himself as Birsa Munda said that he was he was tempted to convert his religion by Christian preachers. However, he and his people were not treated well after conversions. He said, ” We were very poor people. We were enticed to convert to Christianity. But they routinely misbehaved with us. “We are very poor people. Christians converted us. They also frequently misbehaved with us. We reconverted to Hinduism on our own volition,” he told reporters.
Christian Missionaries and Christian proselytisers are now targeting tribals and lower-caste people to bring them under the fold of Christianity by making lofty promises and offering endearments in return for conversion. Recently, a zealot Christian missionary ventured in the restricted Andaman Island with the aim to convert the protected tribals but got killed by the Sentinelese tribe for his unsolicited intrusion.
