Hindu organisations reignite conversion issue

Once again the issue of religious conversion by the Christians has been raised in Madhya Pradesh. The protests and rallies signify a revival of anti-Christian mobilisation.

A little-known organisation Sanskriti Bachao Manch has taken the lead on this occasion. Its members entered a Church and forcibly took away a woman who was being 'converted.

The woman denied that she was lured. She said that she came to the church willingly. But the angry Manch supporters issued a warning to the church authorities who had to send the woman away.

Though Bajrang Dal, Dharam Sena, Vishwa Hindu Parishad and other groups close to RSS have been involved in movements against the missionaries' work, new organisations are also floated regularly.

While it is true that often evangelists work among tribal, this is equally true that self-styled leaders hold protests against Christians to get into limelight. The state government must ensure that the rule of law is maintained and violent incidents against Christians are severely dealt with.

Saffronisation in Schools: BJP introduces Bhojan Mantra

The BJP ministers seem to have a penchant for controversy. The recent announcement that the students will have to recite the 'bhojan mantra' in the schools is the latest example.

The minister Archana Chitnis says that before taking their midday meals, the students will recite this mantra. The Muslim organisations and other minorities' bodies are already upset.

Though the state government and the education minister assert that the mantra has nothing objectionable, it leads to suspicion as this particular mantra is chanted in the Saraswati Shishu Mandir schools run by the RSS.

Was there any need for a mantra, even if it doesn't have Hindu religious words. Shouldn't government focus on improving education rather than further burdening teachers with its agenda?

There is a suspicion that first government will introduce mantra and then the students will have to hold their palms together, resmebling the Hindu prayer. Unfortunately such needless controversies negate the good work undertaken by the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government.

Storm over virginity tests during mass marriage: Tribal girls in MP's Shahdol face humiliation

The brides at a mass wedding ceremony under the state government-sponsored scheme were made to undergo physical tests, creating a major controversy for the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government.

Not just the girls who were about to tie knot, faced tremendous embarrassment, their families were outraged by the unusual check. No less than 152 girls were participating in the mass marriage under the Mukhyamantri Kanyadan Yojana.

The incident occurred in Shahdol. Though government officials say that the manner in which the tests were conducted was wrong, they claim that the aim was to check the malpractices reported recently.

Often pregnant women were also made to sit in the mandap by the middle-men who lured them with the promise of money apart from cases of married couple registering themselves for the marriage again, in order to get the utensils and goods worth Rs 5,000 given by the government.