On Sunday, around 80 people of 12 families in Muzzafarnagar quit Islam and embraced Hinduism in presence of Mahant Swami Yashveer Maharaj at Yog Sadhana Ashram, Bagra. The 80 members, belonging to the Dalit community, alleged that they were earlier Hindus and were forced to convert to Islam by Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan.
According to the reports, the members said that Azam Khan had forced them to quit Hinduism and accept Islam 12 years ago. They also alleged that after the forceful conversion, Khan and his henchmen snatched the properties and wealth belonging to the Dalits. Fed up with everything, they quit Islam and accepted Hinduism in an elaborate ceremony organised to mark their reversion to the faith in presence of Yashveer Maharaj, one of the chef abbots at the Yog Sadhana Ashram.
‘Azam Khan forced us to embrace Islam, he also appropriated our properties’, said Kavita, who reverted back to Hinduism
The members undertook Ghar wapsi by chanting Gayatri Mantra and by embracing the Hindu religious thread ‘Janeu’. Yashveer Maharaj also purified the members with the help of Gangajal. One of the members named Imrana who gave herself a new name on Sunday, Kavita, said, “12 years ago, Azam Khan had forced us to convert to Islam. He also snatched our wealth and properties. He did the same to many other Dalit families.”
Meanwhile, another one named Harjana, who will now be known as Savita, said, “Azam Khan has harassed many people. He forced people to convert to Islam. He is in jail because of his sins. Now we are happy after Ghar wapsi.” Reports mention that the 80 persons who did Ghar Wapsi on December 11 belong to the Dalit community and are residents of Rampur, Uttar Pradesh.
Mahant Swami Yashveer Maharaj at Yog Sadhana Ashram, Bagra also confirmed the incident and said that SP leader Azam Khan had threatened many Dalits to convert their religion to Islam. “These Dalits were lured 12 years ago and were threatened to change their religion. Today these people were purified with the help of Gangajal and now they will be known as Hindus,” he added. According to the Mahant, he has done Ghar Wapsi of around 530 persons.