Chief Minister Pramod Sawant in a startling statement last week said religious conversions are on the rise, and marginalised communities and those from poor backgrounds are being targetted. He said people and temples and their communities need to awaken to this practice and warned that his government will never allow religious conversions to take place. This statement comes close on the heels of his decision to rebuild temples destroyed during the Portuguese rule of Goa.
At a time when there is mounting communal strife and religious discord in neighbouring States, a divide between communities in Goa would be catastrophic since we have set a benchmark for communal harmony and peaceful co-existence. Malicious attempts to play the communal card and score political wins have been rejected in the past, and despite the strong undercurrents, Goa has always emerged as 'one people, one State'.
Sawant’s statement is disturbing because it targets religion and consciously polarises the landscape with an unsavoury “us” versus “them” narrative. This is uncalled for in Goa because the people of the State have always respected religious boundaries and sentiments of various faiths, and upheld the Constitution. The Constitution of India defines the right to freedom of religion in Articles 25, 26, 27 and 28 and gives citizens the liberty to preach, practice and propagate a religion of their choice. We live in a Secular State where there is freedom from the imposition of religion by any government.
While dealing with religious conversions, there is often a distinction between forced conversions or those done under inducements. In India, several States have brought in legislation under the guise of “Freedom of Religion Acts” or “Anti-Conversion Laws” to restrict conversions by force or by inducements. Such laws are currently in force in eight States “ Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand and Uttarakhand. Tamil Nadu too had passed the legislation in 2002 only to be repealed following protests by Christian minorities, and in Rajasthan, the legislation did not get the governor’s assent. We wonder if Sawant is preparing the ground to bring similar legislation into Goa.
Random statements on conversions not only vitiate the ambience but also create a hostile environment that ushers in unease among communities. Sawant cannot infringe upon the basic freedom of individuals to practice a religion of choice and create unnecessary tension between people. Statements that marginalised communities and those from poor backgrounds are being targetted, on the contrary, bring to the fore a systemic failure of taking care of the downtrodden. It raises questions about the insensitivity of those in power to the needs of the poor and marginalised and hence the move to bring religion into focus and target those offering succour appears malafide.
Playing the communal card does not bode well for the CM who had only last month thrown open the swearing-in of his Cabinet to the public and declared that he wants the people of Goa to be a part of his government. Lest we forget, Sawant promised inclusive, people-friendly governance, not communal politics. Goa has bigger challenges ahead, let’s focus on those. It is important that the government steers away from partisan politics and shift the communal narrative to foster goodwill and unity among all communities. Let peace prevail.
