- A body should be set up to stop forced conversions
By: Abdul Rasool Syed
The building of the Jaobabad civil court reverberated with slogans of “Allahu Akbar” when a newly wedded couple, including a bride named Mehak Kumari, re-named Alizah after conversion to Islam, reached to record their statement before a magistrate. The whole scene gave the impression that my Muslim brothers had conquered an impregnable fort.
For a moment, I was struck dumb, wondering what what was there to celebrate as a Muslim since it was a matter between two souls who turned a love-affair into marriage. Since it was impossible for a Hindu girl to consummate her love without being Muslim, she was complled to embrace Islam.
Factually speaking, the episode entirely lacked the narrative advanced by my brothers in faith, that the girl, impressed by the true faith (Islam), decided to embrace it and marry a Muslim boy. Hence, dragging religion into this by either side would be unfair and unjust, merely exploitation of religion for personal gains. The Hindu community, therefore, should not attribute the act of an individual Muslim to all Islam and subject the religion to unwarranted strictures.
Prime Minister Imran Khan must take notice of this injustice to non-Muslim minorities through forced conversions. This act of a handful severely impinges on our national cohesion, for it fosters antipathy between the two communities (Hindu and Muslims). Hopefully, the rulers would understand the sensitivity of the issue and devise an effective strategy to cope with this shameful practice, otherwise Imran’s dream of transforming Pakistan into the state of Madina, would never materialize
The Hindu parents would be uncontrollable when they found their daughter recording she feared from them and hence prayed the court for protection from them. It was really a heart-wrenching moment for everyone in court. Thus the parents were subjected to humiliation in the name of that religion which holds parents in high esteem and makes hurting parents an unpardonable sin.
The parents alleged abduction by the boy and appraised the court their daughter was forcibly converted to Islam and then married. The matter is sub judice; let the court decide its truth.
As far as forceful conversion goes, it is happening in our country on a large scale exclusively in Sindh, which has a large Hindu population. According to the Pakistan Hindu Council, over eight million Hindus live all over Pakistan, making up four percent of the country’s population. A majority of them reside in Sindh where they constitute 6.6 percent of the population, mostly concentrated in the urban areas of the lower Indus valley.
The famous madressas of Sindh at Bharchoondi and Amrot support such forceful conversions. These seminaries not only provide the abductor shelter and security, but also finance to lead his future life comfortably. Encouraged by such support, our Muslim youth is now resorting to abduction and forced proselytism.
DR, Mehdi Hasan, Chairperson of Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), remarks “Many madrassas in interior Sindh are actively involved in forced marriages. They are given patronage by political parties and influential figures in the province which further renders minority helpless.” He added that minorities did not feel secure in a country where no legislation exists to protect the rights and dignity of marginalized communities. “It is the responsibility of the government, state, and parliamentarians to make stringent laws to discourage the rising trend of forced conversion and unsolicited marriages. The matter becomes worse when the children under 18 are forced to marry.”
According to this year’s HRCP report, at least 1,000 girls are forcibly converted, the majority Hindu. The lack of exact data is because a vast majority of instances aren’t reported. Moreover, HRCP believes over 20 Hindu girls are kidnapped monthly.
However, the victims’ parents remain deprived of justice, for it is the privilege of only the wealthy and powerful. The case of Rinkle Kumari should still be fresh. She was 16 when abducted, allegedly forcibly converted, and married to her kidnapper. Twice she cried and pleaded to go back to her parents, once before the civil court, and then before the Supreme Court when it took up a pending petition on forced conversions by the Pakistan Hindu Council. However, when the Supreme Court reassembled after a lengthy adjournment, she had changed her statement and accepted she converted and married of her own free will. No proceedings were ever initiated to learn what happened to change her mind, but we can all guess.
To end to this unjustified forced proselytism, in 2016, a bill was introduced in the Sindh Assembly. It was a welcome first step. For example, it provided for judges and the police to receive sensitization training, and that women be placed in a shelter, or paremts’ custody during court proceedings in which the conversion and subsequent marriage was under challenge (normally, the woman remains with her husband). Perhaps, the most significant part was prohibiting someone from changing religion until 18 years old. Despite the bill being passed, the governor, on the alleged urging of PPP Co-Chairman Asif Zardari, refused assent. The opposition was rooted in the proposed age restriction. Opponents said one could convert to the majority faith no matter one’s age. Moreover, The Council of Islamic Ideology also dubbed it ‘un-Islamic’. Therefore, Jamaat-e-Islami chief Sirajul Haq egged on Zardari to withdraw the bill.
The Hindu Marriage Act was also passed in 2017, which in addition to regulating Hindu marriages was also designed to deal with forced marriages and conversions. However, it has not been implemented so far.
Forced proselytism is neither condoned by our religion and nor our Constitution. Islam repudiates it in categorically. The Quran says “Let there be no compulsion in religion” (2:26) and in another Surah which specifically deals with the religious freedom called “Al-kafirun” it says “say you, O infidels! I worship not that you worship and nor you worship what I worship. And I shall not worship what you worshipped, and nor you shall worship what I worship. For you, your religion, and for me my religion.” The Holy Prophet (PBUH) was also a staunch advocate of the rights of non-Muslim minorities. In one of his sayings he (PBUH) said: “whoever hurts a zimmi (a non-Muslim), hurts me and whoever hurts me, hurts Allah.”
Article 20 of the Constitution guarantees religious freedom to every citizen. Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah also upheld religious freedom. He once remarked: “You are free; you are free to go to your temples, you are free to go to your mosques or to any other place or worship in this State of Pakistan. You may belong to any religion or caste or creed — that has nothing to do with the business of the State”
Prime Minister Imran Khan, who cherishes transforming Pakistan into the state of Madina, must take notice of this injustice to non-Muslim minorities and constitute a special body to suggest measures to arrest forced conversions, which bring notoriety not only to our country but also to Islam. This act of a handful severely impinges on our national cohesion, for it fosters antipathy between the two communities (Hindu and Muslims). Hopefully, the rulers would understand the sensitivity of the issue and devise an effective strategy to cope with this shameful practice, otherwise Imran’s dream of transforming Pakistan into the state of Madina, would never materialize.
