Hindus in minority in Kanyakumari; census does not reflect ground reality of 'crypto-christians': Madras High Court

The demographic profile of Kanyakumari district in terms of religion has seen an inversion since 1980 and the Hindus are in minority in the district though the 2011 census tells us otherwise, the Madras High Court observed on Friday [Fr. P. George Ponnaiah v. The Inspector of Police]..This is because the census does not take into account the fact that a large number of Scheduled Caste Hindus, though having converted to Christianity and professing the said religion, call themselves Hindus on record for the purpose of availing reservation, the Court said. Such persons are called crypto-christians, the Court added.“There was even a motion picture based on this theme (Rudra Thandavam). Out of courtesy, I refrain from mentioning the name of a Judge who belonged to such a category. There was even a writ petition challenging his status. Everyone pretended as if they did not know the truth. But when he died, he was buried as per Christian rites in a cemetery,” the order stated..The order was passed by Justice GR Swaminathan on a plea by a Catholic priest Fr. P George Ponnaiah seeking quashing of the hate speech case filed against him for mocking Hindu religious beliefs at a meeting organized at Arumanai, a village in western Kanyakumari district.The petitioner in his speech had said that the demographics of Christians have crossed 62 percent in Kanyakumari district, the Court noted.The reason for his statement, the Court said, is the inversion in demographics which is not correctly reflected in census.“That is why, notwithstanding the census figures, the petitioner boasts that the Christians have crossed 62 per cent in Kanyakumari District. He foresees that they would soon reach the figure of 72 per cent. His triumphalism is evident when he says “I warn the Hindus” and claims that nothing can stop their growth,” the Court said..Such tendencies might affect the secular character of the country which the founding fathers of the country consciously adopted during the independence in the aftermath of partition riots and deaths of millions.“India was partitioned on the ground of religion. Millions died in the ensuing riots. That is why, our founding fathers consciously adopted secularism as the guiding principle of the new republic. There is something truly enchanting about the idea of India propounded by them. The status quo in the matter of religious demography has to be maintained,” the Court said.The Court clarified that the Constitution guarantees fundamental right to profess and propagate one's religion and if an individual based on his personal conviction, wants to change his religion, his choice must be respected.But religious conversion cannot be a group agenda, the Court underscored.“Dileep Kumar became AR Rahman. Yuvan Shankar Raja is now a Muslim. One of the sons of T Rajendar has embraced Islam. These are perfectly understandable and no exception can be taken. But religious conversions cannot be a group agenda. Our Constitution speaks of composite culture. This character has to be maintained,” the single-judge emphasised..Thus, the status quo as of the year 2022 as regards religious demographic profile may have to be maintained, the Court opined.“If there is a serious subversion of the status quo, calamitous consequences may follow. State is there to maintain and uphold the rule of law. But if the tipping point is reached, things may become irreversible,” the Court said.With these observations, the Court refused to quash the hate speech case invoked against the petitioner under Sections 153A and 295A of the Indian Penal Code..Read more about the order here.[Read Order]