Kolkata

Strongly defending the current controversial campaign of the Sangh Parivar, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat dared the opposition to support a law banning religious conversions.

He also asked the other minorities not to convert Hindus if they also do not want to come back to Hinduism.

“We are trying to create a strong Hindu society. Those who have strayed, they have not gone on their own. They have been allured and have been forcibly taken away. When the thief is being caught and my property has been recovered, when I am taking back my own property, what is new in it?” Bhagwat wondered at a Hindu sammelan here.

“If you don’t like it (re-conversion to Hinduism), then bring a law against it. You don’t want to bring it. If you don’t want to change into a Hindu, then you should not convert Hindus too. We are firm in our position,” he said.

Bhagwat’s comments assume significance in the context of Sangh Parivar outfits carrying out ‘ghar wapsi’ (return to Hindu fold) programme in parts of North India and the Rajya Sabha stalled over the issue with the opposition demanding Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s statement on the issue.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu also taunted the opposition saying if it was concerned about the issue, then they should support a law banning conversions.

Bhagwat said “there is no need to fear. We are in our own country. We are not intruders or infiltrators. This is our own country, our Hindu ‘rashtra’ (nation). A Hindu will not leave his land. What we have lost in the past, we will try to bring it back. No one should be afraid of Hindus rising. Those who are raising voice against the rise of Hindus are selfish and are having vested interests.”

Bhagwat said that Hindu society does not believe in suppressing anyone.

“Hindus have been tolerating whether it is crimes by Bangladesh or Pakistan. Our God says that after 100 crimes, don’t tolerate crimes against Hindus,” he said.

Stating that Pakistan too had been part of India before partition, he said that Hindus do not have a very strong presence there which is why Pakistan can’t live in peace.

“Till the Hindus are here in India, the country is there.

If Hindus are not there, then everybody living here will be in distress,” Bhagwat observed.

He also said that Hindus were strong enough to save their property and honour, adding that “for the betterment of the entire world, there is need for a strong Hindu society”.

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