Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, at a press conference in the national capital on 3 January, said that forceful conversion by fraudulent means is against the rule of law and expressed concern over the conspicuous silence of the Prime Minister on the issue. The Jamaat also clarified that any attempt made in the direction of anti-conversion bill will be against the right to freedom guaranteed under the Constitution.
JIH chief Maulana Syed Jalaluddin Omari, while replying to a question, said that the Prime Minister should not deviate from the issues on which he came to power. Prime Minister talked of good governance and development, and had assured sab ka saath sab ka vikas. While saying that conversion is a state issue, he has only tried to evade the issue and put the onus on the state governments. A prime minister is of the whole nation and he must ensure safeguarding of Constitutional rights of the people and conversion is against Constitutional freedom guaranteed to the people of India.
Addressing the press meet, Mr. Ejaz Ahmed Aslam, Secretary JIH, said that the manner in which people were enticed to play the drama of conversion has now been exposed particularly after the Agra episode. He also said that the statement made by Dharam Jagran Manch leader Rajeshwar Singh that Islam and Christianity would be finished by 2021 and that of RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat that Ghar Wapsi is not wrong must be condemned by all in the country and also by the international community, including civil and human rights groups. He added that people’s faith and trust is decreasing by the day over the manner in which the CBI is dancing to the tune of the government.
Engineer Muhammad Salim, another Secretary of JIH, while replying to a question on the renaming of planning commission, said that earlier the focus of the planning commission was on the urban areas and agriculture but now it seems that the focus has got changed to the corporate sector. So far the government has done nothing other than renaming and making slogans.
On the question of recent massacre in Assam, Shafi Madani, Secretary for Social Service of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, said that in the recent massacre both the Adivasis and the Bodos have been affected. Earlier, the relief camps used to be of Muslims but this time the Adivasis and Bodos are in the camps. More than 2 lakh Adivasis are in camps at present. Notably, Jamaat is doing relief work in both Adivasi and Bodos camps. He also informed the press persons that Jamaat has built a village comprising 126 homes in Kokrajhar and that it will be inaugurated by JIH chief Maulana Jalaluddin Omari in the second week of January. Altogether 350 homes have been built for the Kokrajhar riot victims.