In 2018, one Pravin Vasava of Amod, Bharuch got converted to Islam. Vasava belonged to the Vasava Hindu tribal community. He converted to Islam and went by the name Salman Patel.
As per notarised documents filed in Surat in 2018, he had stated that he was in touch with people from Muslim community since a year and was convinced Islam is the religion of peace and true religion. He claimed he wanted to convert to Islam and none of his relatives had any objection to the same.
“Because of that, I have recited the five Kalmas and converted to Islam and am living my life as per Sharia. I will also spend rest of my life as a Muslim as per Sharia,” he said in the affidavit. He mentioned that after embracing Islam he would then be known as Salman Patel. He had claimed he was not lured into embracing Islam and he did it by his own free will.
Forced religious conversion: Modus operandi
However, that is not what had happened. Speaking to OpIndia, Pravin Vasava, who has now filed a police complaint regarding the same, said that the tribal families, were converted to Islam by making tall promises. “We were taught there is no such religion as Hindu religion and Islam is true religion. One Abdul Ajit, who himself had converted to Islam, made us such promises. We were not informed that our Aadhaar cards and other identification would be changed. However, he took us to Surat and got legal documents done. He made us sign papers and also got our Aadhaar changed,” he said.
Vasava informed that a Maruti Ecco car was hired and about 7-8 people were ferried from Bharuch to Surat 2-3 times to get people to sign the papers. “Tribals are poor people. If someone gives some food grains, we believe they are nice people. Which is why people get lured to religious conversion,” Vasava said. He added that other promises for religious conversion included help in business, employment, marriages, second marriages, pakka houses, food grains and money.
“I used to go with Abdul Ajit. He would call up people in foreign countries like England and boast about the number of people converted to Islam. On that basis, he would receive funds. That is when I realised it was business for him. This is why I filed police complaint so that others don’t get cheated the way we did,” he said.
Abdul Ajit is one of the nine accused named in the FIR.
Fefdawala Haji Abdullah and funding from London
Another accused named in the FIR is one Fefdawala Haji Abdullah, who is originally a native of Nabipur in Bharuch but currently living in London, UK. A video from a few years back shows him boasting about the conversion of Hindus to Islam.
Fefdawala in above video says that he is from London. “I came to know about you guys that you have embraced Islam. I have come to specially meet you. I will pass on your message in London that Allah has accepted you. Now you are our brothers as per Kalma. We will provide all possible help we could,” he said.
He then passes on the message to London in the video that he is currently in Kankaria village of Amod Taluka where 37 families had turned to Islam. He thanked ‘Ajit bhai’ for the help. He then asks ‘Ajit bhai’ if they need any help with respect to food, houses or any such financial aids.
Ajit Abdul, then introduces himself and describes how he indulged in religious conversion. He talks about one Samir who ‘encouraged’ him to embrace Islam. He claimed he used to drink alcohol but Samir told him that alcohol is not good. “It is haram in Islam as well as in Hindu religion. Hinduism also speaks about Mohammad Sahab in the Shastras. But we told how no Brahmin ever told us about it,” he said.
He further explained, “We got these four pillars to put up the roof. But Allah created the universe without any walls. This struck me and I thought it was true.” He then claims that Allah is one, whether you call him Bhagwan, Ishwar or God. He then says how he increased his meetings with Samir who gave him a book to read. “Every day at 5 PM I had to drink alcohol. He asked me if I was drunk and asked me to go to him in the morning when I had not consumed alcohol when he would give me the book,” he said.
Ajit Abul then went on to say how he embraced Islam.
Sources in the know of the story say that the procedure to convert Hindus to Islam in the village started as back as 2009-2010 but the ones who converted were either returning to Hindu fold or were not really active. Which is why they started to make the religious conversion official so that funding can be secured. “Once converted, they would send the children to madarsa near Hajira and in Jambusar.
“They were also taken a few times to Tablighi Jamaat where they spent a few days in Malegaon and Mumbai. Earlier they were part of Ahl-i-Hadith Jamaat but moved on to Barelvi movement,” a source said. Barelvi is a Sunni revivalist movement from Hanafi school of jurisprudence in opposition to Deobandi movement. It is believed about two-thirds of Muslims in India follow the Barelvi movement. Of which, Islamist organisation Raza Academy, responsible for recent violence in Maharashtra is one prominent organisation.
Bharuch Police files FIR against 9 people
Police have lodged a complaint against nine persons under the Gujarat Freedom of Religion (Amendment) Bill, 2021 Act and various sections of the Indian Penal Code. The accused have been identified as Shabbir Bakerywala, Samad Bakerywala, Abdul Aziz Patel, Yusuf Patel, Ayyub Patel, Ibrahim Patel, Fefdawala Haji Abdullah, Hasan Tisli and Ismail Achhodwala. All the accused are local residents barring one who is residing in London and identified as Fefdawala Haji Abdullah.
Bharuch Police has initiated investigation in mass religious conversion racket in Kankaria village of Amod Taluka. There are allegations of illegal religious conversion of Hindus by Islamists who have obtained funding from foreign countries to carry forward mass conversion of Hindus. The conversion takes place by giving cash to Hindus or promising financial aid to the ones who are financially needy and also taking advantage of their lack of knowledge, it is alleged.
It is further alleged that the mass religious conversion is a bid to pit Hindus against Muslims and disturb peace and religious harmony. As many as 100 people of 37 Hindu families have been converted to Islam by luring them with money and other incentives.
As per police statement, Fefdawala Haji Abdul, a native of Nabipur in Bharuch, currently living in London, who has also been accused of being involved in similar forced religious conversions in Uttar Pradesh and Vadodara, has been accused of raising funds for forced religious conversion in Bharuch and other parts of India, a statement released by Bharuch Police read.
The police statement further reads that this money raised from foreign lands was further used to lure Hindu men and women to Islam. Subsequently, alert citizens took it upon themselves and filed a police complaint regarding the same. A case has been registered on the same and further investigation has been initiated.
Links with Uttar Pradesh mass conversion racket
It is believed that the mass conversion in Bharuch has links with the recently unearthed mass religious conversion racket in Uttar Pradesh. Two maulvis were arrested in June this year by Anti Terrorism Squad, Uttar Pradesh where they were accused of converting at least 1,000 people to Islam.
The accused were later identified as Mufti Qazi Jahangir Qasmi and Mohammad Umar Gautam and were residents of Jamia Nagar in South Delhi. The two accused, who ran an organisation named Islamic Dawah Centre(IDC), along with their other associates, were charged for mass conversion of people into Islam through inducements such as marriage, job and money and mental pressure.
Reports had suggested that the children were converted and brainwashed to be used as ‘human bombs‘. The perpetrators brainwashed the differently-abled children into hating non-Muslims, accepting Islam and were planning to use them as suicide bombers as the scope of retaliation from such children is limited, informed a senior official.
When the racket was busted, many stories of religious conversion came to light, some of them were also from Gujarat.
