On 14th December, Maharashtra minister Mangal Prabhat Lodha stated in the legislative council that a committee would be constituted to examine the advantages enjoyed by members of scheduled tribes (ST) community in Maharashtra who have converted to Christianity or Islam and left Hinduism. The issue would be presented to Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy CMs Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar.

The panel would be presided over by the vice-chancellor of a university and would consist of members from all political parties who would look into cases of tribal (Janjati/Vanvasi) conversion. The minister remarked that the committee would look into the concerns mentioned by Bhartiya Janta Party MLA Niranjan Davkhare and present a report in 45 days.

He was reacting to an appeal to action made by BJP lawmakers Niranjan Davkhare and Pravin Darekar who demanded that tribal people who embraced Islam or Christianity be removed from the ST list and that their right to reservation be terminated. The BJP lawmaker had earlier argued that the Janjati members who had converted were receiving benefits intended for scheduled tribes and minorities during the debate on the de-listing of those Janjati community members who had switched to other faiths.

The Minister of Tourism, Skill Development and Entrepreneurship also voiced worry about the rising number of reported cases of forced and inducement conversions among tribe members and asserted that these actions undermine tribal culture.

However, the opposition leaders who contended that members of scheduled tribes have the right to choose their religion and that the planned de-listing process would result in religious discrimination engaged in a contentious debate over the matter. Congress legislator Kapil Patil claimed that the proposed delisting would amount to prejudice based on faith and alleged that members of a Scheduled Tribe have the right to pick their religion. According to him, if the indigenous people convert to Hinduism it becomes acceptable (for those looking to delist them upon conversion) but if they convert to Islam, Christianity or Buddhism, it is not approved.

Notably, there have been many allegations of the unlawful conversion of Janjati community members through coercion and seduction that have surfaced regularly. This included conversion that is pushed by deception and false promises of financial assistance, jobs, education and health care. Furthermore, numerous reports of conversions that occur in the Janjati-dominated districts of Bharat involve the provision of rations and the enticement of innocent girls from the community by concealing true identities.

It is important to note that the Janjati community in several Indian states has been taking to the streets in support of a national delisting initiative to find members of the community who have converted to another religion but still possess a scheduled tribe certificate and are eligible to use the reservation’s benefits. Numerous comparable demonstrations have also taken place in Maharashtra, where the Janjati group makes up a sizeable 9% of the state’s population.

Sharad Chauvhan, the Janjati Suraksha Manch’s media coordinator previously conveyed during his talk on the subject that the Janjati society has organised up to 231 rallies throughout various states to support the cause of delisting and that a nationwide delisting exercise is urgently needed. He stressed, “Our demand is clear, those who have converted to any religion other than those originated in Bharat should not avail the benefits exclusively reserved for the Janjatis.”

The desire for delisting is one of the long-standing issues facing the tribal community and many of its leaders have been observed expressing support for it. This includes legendary figures like Baba Kartik Oraon who backed the idea of a national identity program to protect the rights granted only to the tribal community.