Hardline Hindus’ Christmas warning

INDIA: A right-wing Hindu revivalist organisation has warned Christian missionary schools in northern India that they celebrate Christmas at ‘‘their own risk’’, claiming that Hindu children are being ‘‘lured’’ to Christianity.

In a letter to several Christianrun schools in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, 180km southeast of New Delhi, the Hindu Jagran Manch group says Christmas is ‘‘essentially a ploy to lure and convert Hindu children’’.

Sonu Savita, the local head of the organisation, said the warning against celebrating Christmas was not directed against Christians but at a Christian festival being foisted upon Hindu children in their schools.

‘‘No school has a majority of Christian students. So why do these schools where Hindus are in a majority celebrate Christmas?’’ he asked.

Savita also said the schools were asking Hindu children to bring toys and presents to celebrate Christmas, which he declared was the ‘‘easy way to lure them to Christianity’’.

The provincial government has told the police to ensure a peaceful Christmas for Aligarh’s small Christian community, with many fearing violence if they celebrate their biggest festival. Christians constitute around 2.3 per cent of India’s population of 1.3 billion.

The Manch - also known as the Forum for Hindu Awakening - campaigns to keep Hinduism pure by reconverting Muslims and Christians and furthering its goal of turning India into a Hindu state. The group’s warning follows the recent arrest of around 30 Catholic priests and carol singers in nearby Madhya Pradesh state after a Hindu accused them of trying to convert him. – Telegraph Group