Gharvapsi of 500 converted Sikhs in Pilibhit (Uttar Pradesh)

Event organized by Vishwa Hindu Parishad

(Gharvapsi means returning to one’s original religion)

Sikh brothers present at a program of the Vishva Hindu Parishad.

Pilibhit (Uttar Pradesh) – An estimated 500 Sikhs returned to Sikhism at a Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) event in villages along the Indo-Nepal border in Pilibhit District. These people had earlier abandoned Sikhism and converted to Christianity. A large number of people from the Sikh community attended the event held in Belha and Tatarganj villages. The VHP organized two-day camps in these villages and conducted an awareness campaign to bring people back to Sikhism. A heavy Police contingent was deployed on the occasion.

1. VHP’s organization minister Prince Gaur said they met people in villages bordering Nepal and explained the importance of Sikhism. Many families decided to return to Sikhism voluntarily. The Gurudwara Management Committee has brought 160 families back to Sikhism through religious programmes like ‘Amritpan’. Also, social boycott was imposed on some people who were inciting others to convert.

2. Complaints of conversions have been coming in for a long time in the villages of Belha, Tatarganj, Bamanpuri and Singhara in Pilibhit. Local Sikh organizations claim that Nepali priests and some local priests encouraged Sikhs to convert to Christianity through financial inducements and healing sessions.

3. According to the All India Sikh Punjabi Welfare Council, more than 3,000 Sikhs have been converted in the last few years. Of these, a list of 160 families was submitted to the administration.

4. Considering the seriousness of the matter, newly appointed District Magistrate Gyanendra Kumar Singh has formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate the allegations of conversion. Based on the complaint of a Sikh woman, Manjeet Kaur, the Police have registered a case against 8 people. The 8 people are accused of forcing Manjeet Kaur to convert and of damaging her fields against her will. Manjeet said that her husband had already converted to Christianity and now she and her children are being pressured to convert as well.