Devapriyaji - True History Analaysed

The Christian Missionary Activities Enquiry Committee was appointed by a Resolution of the Government of Madhya Pradesh No. 318-716-V-Con., dated the 14th of April, 1954 (Appendix I).

2. It was represented to Government from time to time that the conversion of illiterate aboriginals and other backward people was effected by the Christian Missionaries either forcibly or through fraud or temptations of monetary gain, and the Government were informed that the feelings of non-Christians were being offended by conversions brought about by such methods.  The Christian Missionaries repudiated before Government these allegations and charged local officials and non-Christians of harassment and as the State Government found that an agitation was growing on either side, it considered it desirable in. the public interest to have a thorough enquiry made into the whole question.  This Committee was, therefore, appointed, with Dr. M. Bhawani Shankar Niyogi, M.A., LL.M., LL.D., Ex-Chairman, Public, Service Commission, Madhya Pradesh, and retired Chief Justice, High Court of judicature at Nagpur, as Chairman, and Shri Ghanshyam Singh Gupta, B.Sc., LL.B., Ex-Speaker, Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly, Durg, Shri Seth Govind Das, M. P., Jabalpur, Shri Kirtimant Rao, B.A. M.L.A., Ahiri, Tahsil Sironcha, District Chanda, Shri S. K. George, M.A., B.D., Professor, Commerce College, Wardha, and Shri B. P. Pathak, M.A., LL.B., Secretary to Government, Madhya Pradesh, Public Health Department, as members.  Seth Govind Das resigned membership on 8th May, 1954 due to his preoccupation with other work and was substituted by Shri Ratanlal Malviya, B.A., LL.B., M. P., Manendragarh, (vide Resolution No. 419-860-V-Con., dated 8th May, 1954).  On his appointment to the Madhya Pradesh Cabinet, Shri Kirtimant Rao also resigned and was succeeded by Shri Bhanupratapsingh Giri Raj Singh Deo, M.P., of Komakhan, Tahsil Mahasamund, District Raipur, (vide Resolution No. 18-279-XXX-MR, dated 4th January, 1955).

3. The Committee was entrusted with the task of making a thorough enquiry into the whole question and to make recommendations on a review thereof from historical and other points of view.

4. The Committee was authorised to frame its own procedure for conducting the enquiry and to appreciate the circumstances in which the Government considered it necessary to appoint this Committee, access to certain files of Government was permitted. On going through all the relevant material, the Committee thought it necessary and desirable to meet representative members of the contestant parties at various important centres in the State and to ascertain the specific points in the controversy.  The Committee undertook a tour of the following 14 districts :- 
  
 

Seventy-seven centres were visited and an approximate number of 11,360 people were contacted. 375 written statements were received and the Committee took down notes at each centre.  To gain firsthand knowledge of the working of the various Mission institutions, the Committee visited institutions like hospitals, schools, churches, leper homes, hostels, etc., maintained by the various Missions operating in Madhya Pradesh and also had an opportunity of contacting local people amongst whom activities of the Missions were carried on and also the areas in which the various Missions were functioning.  A copy of the tour programme is appended (Vol. II).  The persons whom we interviewed came from about 700 villages and the statements of a large number of spokesmen from amongst them were recorded.

5. On the vital matter of religion, which is ordinarily surcharged with emotion, occasionally there was a flare-up of vehemence but such occasions were extremely rare, as ample precaution was taken at the outset of the proceedings to explain the object of the enquiry as being to clear up doubts and disputes that may exist and to promote goodwill, friendliness and peace among the various sections of the people.  The exploratory work of the Committee accordingly proceeded very smoothly and helpfully, except for two minor incidents, at Takhatpur in Bilaspur district and Jabalpur.  At Takhatpur Shri Ottalwar, Advocate, who was the only spokesman addressing the Committee on behalf of a large concourse of rural people, made some critical remarks of a political nature on the admission made by Rev. Maqbul Musih that he had received Rs. 38,000 from America for the Abundant Life Movement carried on by him in the rural areas with a view to stave off the danger of Communism.  No protest was made by Rev. Masih, but only by the representative of the Catholic Association, Mr. Francis. At Jabalpur, an Arya Samajist referred to some passages in the Bible which he thought inculcated immorality, while he was speaking about religious education.  As the Christians present resented the reference the Committee asked the speaker to drop it and he obeyed.

6. In all the places visited by the Committee there was unanimity as regards the excellent service rendered by the Missionaries, in the fields of education and medical relief.  But on the other hand there was a general complaint from the non-Christian side that the schools and hospitals were being used as means of securing converts. There was no disparagement of Christianity or of Jesus Christ, and no objection to the preaching of Christianity and even to conversions to Christianity. The objection was to the illegitimate methods alleged to be adopted by the Missionaries for this purpose, such as offering allurement�s of free education and other facilities to children attending their schools, adding some Christian names to their original Indian names, marriages with Christian girls, money-lending, Distributing Christian literature in hospitals and offering prayers in the wages of in-door patients.  Reference was also made to the practice of the Roman Catholic priests or preachers visiting new-born babies to give �ashish� (blessings) in the name of Jesus, taking sides in litigation or domestic quarrels, kidnapping of minor children and abduction of women and recruitment of labour for plantations in Assam or Andaman as a means of propagating the Christian faith among the ignorant and illiterate people.  There was a. general tendency to suspect some ulterior political or extra-religious motive, in the influx of foreign money for evangelistic work in its varied forms.  The concentration of Missionary enterprise on the hill tribes in remote and inaccessible parts of the forest areas and their mass conversion with the aid of foreign money were interpreted as intended to prepare the ground for a separate� independent State on the lines of Pakistan.  In the Raigarh and Surguja districts, the Christians complained against the petty Government officials, but there were practically none in other districts including Berar.  At the meetings held in Surguja, Raigarh and Bilaspur districts there were present prominent Christian representatives, like Rev. Lakra of Ranchi, Rev. Kujur (Lutheran Mission), Rev. Gurbachansingh (American Evengelical Mission), Rev. Masih (Disciples of Christ), Shri Minz (General Secretary the Catholic Sabha).  Shri Minz complained against the sinister activities of Boko Sardar, of Shri Deshpande.  Advocate, of Baijnath Mishra and of the Tribal Welfare Department.  Shri Jagdish Tirkey, Secretary of the Adiwasi Jharkhand Party, claimed that Jharkhand was necessary to preserve the unity of the Uraons. He and Rev. Kujur repudiated the imputation against the Missionaries that they instigated the movement for an independent State. There was no specific complaints against officials or non-Christians besides the above. But there was a general complaint above the non-recognition of Mission schools. Rev. Nath of Khandwa complimented the Missionaries for elevating the Ballahis from their down-trodden condition in the Hindu society.  In the Betul district meeting, Rev. E. Raman and many American Missionaries had no complaints to make against the Government officers or members of the public.

7. On the basis of the allegations made orally and in writing a large number of people including Christians, supplemented by information derived from official sources and published literature bearing on the subject-matter of the enquiry it was thought necessary to make a thorough and searching probe into the problem. Accordingly, an elaborate questionnaire came to be issued so as to afford full opportunity to the parties concerned to assist the Committee in every way possible.

8. It may be noted that the Committee was not appointed under any enactment such as the Commission of Enquiry Act IX of 1952 but only under the inherent powers of the grate Government.  The Committee consequently functioned on a purely voluntary basis.  It had neither the power to compel any one to attend before it, nor to make any statement, oral or written, nor to administer an oath.  The Committee thus had no coercive power in any shape or form.  No one was bound to answer all or any question contained in the Questionnaire or to answer it in a prescribed manner.  The enquiry was riot judicial, in the sense that it was calculated to have an operative effect.  As the Committee interpreted the Terms of Reference, it appeared to it that the object of the enquiry was to ascertain the facts from the people directly at first-hand, unlike a judicial enquiry which proceeds on the material brought before it by an investigating authority.  The attitude of the Government, as well as that of the party in power, was perfectly neutral.

9. The scope of the enquiry was considerably enlarged by reason of the broad Terms of Reference relating to �Political and extra-religious objectives.� and �a thorough review of the question from the historical and other points of view�. At first sight the subject of the enquiry presented itself as a purely local one but that turned out to be more apparent than real. The material gathered in the initial stages of the enquiry revealed to the Committee that its significance far transcended the bounds of any one country or region in the world and that it was calculated to have world- wide repercussions. That compelled the Committee to view the subject as an integral part of a larger picture on the broad canvas of world history. The Committee had to consult a number of published books, pamphlets and periodicals for deter- mining the nature and form of their recommendations.

10. On the true construction of the Terms of Reference the Committee found that the subject in hand should be divided under specified beads, viz., Conversions, Social Relations. Hospitals and Schools with a separate head for Remedies.  The questions set out under each of these heads are indeed exploratory and searching, but in no way unconnected with the issues involved in the enquiry.

11. The response to the Questionnaire was encouraging, indicating as it did, the co-operation of the public as well as of the Protestant Missionary Bodies operating in the various districts of the State. 385 replies to the questionnaire were received in the office of the Committee out of which 55 were from Christian individuals or organisations and 330 from non-Christians.  The authorities and members of the Roman Catholic Church co-operated with the Committee in their exploratory tours in Raigarh, Surguja, Bilaspur, Raipur and Nimar districts. Shri G. X. Francis, President of the Catholic Regional Council, and Shri P. Lobo, Advocate, High Court, Nagpur, associated themselves with the Committee.  But subsequently the Catholic Church withdrew its co-operation, not only ling a statement of protest, but also moving the High Court for a Mandamus Petition (Miscellaneous Petition No. 263.of 1955).

Their Lordships dismissed the petition on 12th April, 1956, holding that it was within the competence of the State Government to appoint a fact-finding Committee to collect information and that there had been no-infringement of any of the fundamental rights of the petitioner.  The Committee have gone through the Lengthy judgment of the Hon�ble High Court very carefully and have given respectful consideration to the views expressed therein.  We may however like to state that some of the remarks concerning a few questions in our Questionnaire proceed from an apparent lack of full knowledge of the nature of the allegations made before us which formed the basis of those questions.  We had repeatedly informed the petitioner and the public that none of the questions represented either the views of the Committee or any individual member thereof and our anxiety to have information on various points was due to our desire to find out to what extent, if any, could any activity be considered to infringe the limits of public order, morality aria health imposed by the Constitution.  As will be clear from the body of this report, we have confined ourselves entirely to the spirit and letter of our Constitution. 
 

In another part we pro se to give the history of Christian Missions in old Madhya Pradesh and also in the Merged States.  In this Chapter it is intended to detail the circumstances which led the Government to appoint this Fact-finding Committee.  Our source of information has been the various files made available to us by Government.  As the immediate cause which ultimately led to our appointment was the activities of some Mission organizations in the recently Merged States of Raigarh, Udaipur, Jashpur and Surguja, it will be useful to describe the principal or toot causes of whatever trouble was reported in the integrated States soon after their merger on 1st January, 1948.  Even in the old Madhya Pradesh the Government, was not unfamiliar with the problem of Missionary activities amongst aboriginals, because many of our districts contained a large number of Adiwasi population and Government had been carrying out, welfare measures for them for a good length of time.  It is reported that about 18 per cent of the total population of Madhya Pradesh prior to Integration consisted of aboriginals and that the Integration of the States added nearly 28 lakhs to the population of Madhya Pradesh, out of whom about 53 per cent were aboriginals.  According to official reports the integration of Chhattisgarh States was carried out smoothly and was hailed with joy by all sections of the community including the aboriginals.  When the then Premier toured the Integrated States, attempts were made by Christian and other Uraons of Jashpur State to create-some trouble, but it never presented a formidable problem.

2. The chief cause of unrest could be located against the following background :-

(a) Oppression and misgovernment which existed prior to Integration: In other parts of this Report a detailed reference to the various forms of oppression practised on the Adiwasis by the Malguzars, the Zamindars and the ex-Rulers will be found.

(b) The expectations of the people of the Integrated States of immediate improvement in their moral and material conditions as a result of Integration were pitched so high that almost inevitably they were bound to be disappointed to some extent.  Improvement of conditions in a specially backward area has necessarily to be a gradual process, which was not recognized.

(c) Almost from the very beginning interested parties, including Christian Missionaries, began to intermeddle and create dissatisfaction by exploiting the situation.  These interested parties were firstly the Rajas and their supporters and hirelings and also politicians of the neighbouring States, who wished to secure integration of some of the former States in their area despite history, geography and economy.  An end was put to the activities of such persons by the decision of the Union Ministry of States in May 1948, but according to Government reports the activities of Missionaries continued further though surreptitiously.

(d) The reports which the Government of Madhya Pradesh had obtained from the former States in respect of the activities of Missionaries show that their role in the past had not been healthy, their methods not savoury.  Two or three times there were rebellions in the States and even the Political Department, which was in the hands of the European Christians, was compelled to put restrictions on the entry of Missionaries and their movement in the former States.  Details of the Acts passed by the former States of Surguja, Udaipur and Raigarh regulating conversion and restricting the movement, etc., of Missionaries will be found elsewhere in this Report. On the integration of the States, Missionaries became afraid of losing their influence. So they started an agitation, playing on the religious feelings of the primitive Christian converts, representing the Madhya Pradesh Government as consisting of infidels and so on. Some of the articles published in Missionary papers, such as �Nishkalank� �Adiwasi� and �Jharkhand� were hardly distinguishable from the writings in Muslim papers advocating Pakistan, before, before the 15th of August 1947.  The Missionaries launched a special attack on the opening of schools by Madhya Pradesh Government under the Backward Area Welfare Scheme.  The then Commissioner of Chhattisgarh Division, contacted the Father Superior of the Roman Catholics at Jashpurnagar in February 1948 and explained to him the secular nature the Indian Union and the freedom of religion and worship which every citizen enjoyed in it.  He pointed out that there was no hindrance to Missionaries carrying on their religious activity in a lawful manner, but if the leaders of the Missions mixed up religion with politics and appealed to the religions fanaticism of the easily gullible Adiwasis they could not naturally claim the sanctity and consideration which attaches to religious organisations.  He further explained that having once suffered grievously from the communalistic policies of some persons, India could not afford to have another such movement in its very heart.  The Catholic Father Superior gave the Commissioner an undertaking that the Mission would confine itself only to religion and not dabble in politics at all.  The following letter written by Father Vermiere of the Jashpur Roman Catholic Mission may be quoted in extenso, to show the attitude of the Missionaries including foreigners, at the time of the Integration of the States :-

�We need help very much as we are so deep in debt and have to face worse times with a new Government so much against the Christians.

 

�Rev. Father Rector has probably acquainted you with what I wrote some time ago.  Things have riot much improved, although aye are rather on good terms with the local authorities.  Even so it is no more is before.  As more than one of the new or old officials points out, the men sent this side are too inferior, and cannot compare with, for instance, the late Dean.  Next those employed do riot seem to have half the powers necessary.  Things have continually to be referred higher tip, (which means most of the time no answer to the letters) and petitions, are delayed for five or six months.  What I say is the common complaint all over Jashpur from officials no less thin from the common people.  Moreover it seems to be a common complaint all over the Province, that this is the way.

 

�We should, e.g., settle about the transition from Patna syllabus to that of Nagpur.  But the new Inspectors have still to come.  They are always coming, but never arrive.  The best and probably the most sympathetic, to whom I wrote a personal letter, and is practically for us the head, would come in April, they in May; lately he informed me that he would come this month.  July is over and there is no trace of him.  They have been wasting the month of May and part of June on Adult Education, good in itself but much of a farce as it was conducted.  Hindu propaganda with open attempts to draw the Christians into the Hindu fold, occupied a large part of the programme.  In the end the Christians refused to go, on account of that propaganda and the Education came to an end.  Meanwhile the Inspectors have no time for any other work than that.

 

�The Bishop wishes me to discuss with them the question of our attempted High School at Ginabahar, but cannot do this with such fellows who come as makeshifts, till they can get away.

 

�You may have read lately in the Herald some-very spirited answers purported to come from Jashpur Christian students, against the vile slander by one who came with a large retinue to spy our Institutions at Gholeng and Ginabahar.  He dares call himself a member of the much esteemed Servants of India Society.  He and his colleague have nearly wrecked the nascent Mission of the Norbertine Fathers in Mandla, District Jubbulpore. They were sent here by the Prime Minister, but if they hope to ruin this Mission, they are very much mistaken.  Our Catholics are too advanced to he taken in. or frightened by such slanderers.  Protest meetings against their vile report continue to be held, chiefly to wreck their treacherous machinations.  As one of the two, is a sort of Minister for the uplift of the backward people, he has a considerable Government budget to dispose of.  Their aim is more to prevent us front converting, than to care for the uplift of those they used to keep them in bondage.  Just now they are starting 40 new schools for these backward Adibasis.  The third I hear of, is in a village where we possess a school since 30 years.  But knowing that many pagan children come to our schools and that we had sent a petition for a building to enlarge that school, they surreptitiously try and draw aw the pagan children from us.  But we are ready for them. Today my men are gone there to attend a big panchayat to draw tip a protest, and get all the pagans to refuse withdrawing their children from us. I am giving you all this for the sake of those in the community interested in Jashpur affairs.�

In a subsequent visit to the then Premier at Nagpur, Father Vermiere was confronted with this letter and lie then gave an undertaking in writing that he would have no objection to schools being established by Government in the States.

3. Let us turn our attention to the activities of the Missionaries in the Merged States of Surguja and Udaipur during the months following their Integration.  It has already been mentioned that the former Rulers of these States had consistently stopped the infiltration of Missionaries in their territories and with the full knowledge and consent of the then Political Department Anti conversion Acts were passed.  In spite of these Acts individual Missionaries, specially Rev. Stanislus Tigga, a Roman Catholic Priest with his headquarters in Ranchi, kept on visiting these areas surreptitiously and carried on propaganda in the garb of religion.  The strip of land comprising Surguja, Korea, Jashpur, Udaipur, Changbhakar and some other small.  States of Orissa is surrounded by Bihar and Orissa States and is inhabited by a very large percentage of aboriginals.  The tract is full of forests and mineral resources.  Foreign Missionaries from Belgium and Germany had established themselves in Bihar and Orissa and also in Jashpur in 1834 and had succeeded in converting a very large number of people to Christianity.  In order to consolidate and enhance their prestige, and possibly to afford scope for alien interests in this tract, the Missionaries were reported to be carrying on propaganda for the isolation of the Aboriginals from other sections of the community and the movement of Jharkhand was thus started.  This movement was approved by the Aboriginals, local Christians and Muslims and the Missionaries sought to keep it under their influence by excluding all the nationalists elements from this movement.  The demand for Adiwasisthan was accentuated along with the one for Pakistan in 1938.  The Muslim League is reported to have donated Rs. one lakh for propaganda work.  With the advent of political independence in India, the agitation for Adiwasisthan was intensified, with a view to forming a sort of corridor joining East Bengal with Hyderabad, which could be used for a pincer movement against India in the event of a war between India and Pakistan.  The Christian community, supported by the Missionaries of the Ranchi district, organised themselves into a �Raiyat Warg�, ostensibly to do social work, but in reality to propagate the Adiwasi movement.  To counteract the isolationist doctrine of this organization of Christians, the non-Christians formed a Praja Mandal.  Although there was a tussle between these two organizations which continued till the integration of the States with Madhya Pradesh, they joined bands on learning that Surguja and Jashpur States were being merged with Madhya Pradesh and started a pro-Bihar agitation.  At the prospect of the integration of the States with Madhya Pradesh Mr. Jaipal Singh, member of the Constituent Assembly and President of the All-India Adiwasi Association, who is also commonly described as the father of the Jharkhand movement, protested in November 1947 against the merger of Surguja and Jashpur with Madhya Pradesh and accused the Bihar Government with failure to serve the people by not insisting on the integration of those States with Bihar.  After having seen the then Premier of Bihar at Ranchi, Shri Jaipal Singh convened a conference of All-India Adiwasi Maha Sabha, on 14th January of 1948.  This pro-Bihar agitation, which was originally started at the instance of the Roman Catholic and Lutheran Missionaries of Ranchi in Bihar district, soon obtained the support of other Christians, non-Christians, aboriginals and members of the Bihar Congress party and it was also reported that the then Hon�ble Premier of Bihar and the Hon�ble Revenue Minister had sympathy with this cause.  Accordingly a party consisting of some Bihar Congressmen, Rev. Lakra, the head of the Lutheran Mission and a Jamidar visited Surguja in the second week of January 1948 to mobilise public opinion in favour of the integration of those States with Bihar. Two members of this party, however, informed the District Superintendent of Police, Surguja, that they were not fully agreeable to the views of the remaining members and further brought to the District Superintendent of Police�s notice that there was a conspiracy between Pakistan and some American and German Missionaries to instigate the aboriginals to take possession of their own land, commonly known as Jharkhand.  In Kharsaon and Sarikela States of Orissa there was violence necessitating the use of force to suppress it.  At the All-India Adiwasis� conference on 14th January, of 1948, called by Mr. Jaipal Singh, speeches after speeches were made narrating the disadvantages and worries associated with the merger of the States with Madhya Pradesh and the benefits accruing from their amalgamation with Bihar.  Two Christians and a non-Christian were appointed propagandists to carry on pro-Bihar agitation.  The Praja Mandal which consisted mostly of non-Christians and which was lacking in funds refused to support the pro-Bihar propaganda and in a meeting held at Bargaon (Jashpur) on 20th January, 1948 it was unanimously resolved to agree to the integration of Surguja and Jashpur with Madhya Pradesh.

4. The activities of the Missionaries in the Jashpur area from January 1948 to the, end of May when the Union Ministry of States decided finally the question of merger of Surguja and Jashpur with Madhya Pradesh may be narrated.  According to official reports these activities, though ostensibly carried on by Indian Christians, were in fact sponsored by Missionaries to secure a-strong foothold in the hitherto forbidden territories of Udaipur and Surguja.

January 1948.-The agitation for the inclusion of Jashpur, Udaipur, Surguja and Changbhakar States in the Bihar Province was continued and prominent persons of Ranchi visited Jashpur. Rev. J. Lakra, the head of German Lutheran Mission, carried on propaganda for a separate Jharkhand Province, which would be administered by Christians, who predominated in the area concerned.  Three meetings of Christians were held in the Jashpur State for the purpose of carrying on this propaganda.

February 1948.- Three more meetings were held in Jashpur sub-division in connection with the Christian agitation in favour of amalgamation with Bihar.  Speakers pointed out that inclusion in the Central Provinces would mean economic and social retardation and the evaporation of their dream of Jharkhand.  At a meeting at Ichkelah (Jashpur) on 13th February it was announced that an Adiwasi fund for defending the interests of Adiwasis had been started. Rev. J. Lakra was suspected of dissuading Christians from participating in Mahatma Gandhi�s Ashes Immersion Ceremony observed at Jashpur on 12th February.  Julias Tigga, Secretary Adiwasi Sabha, Ranchi, visited Jashpur and Ambikapur about the 14th of February and was warned by the District Magistrate, Surguja, for indulging in objectionable activities.  On 21st February 1948, Bowfus Lakra, a parliamentary Secretary of Bihar and Joseph Tigga, Pleader of Ranchi, addressed a small meeting at the prominent Roman Catholic Mission Centre of Ginabahar in which, although opposition to the formation of Jharkhand was voiced, it was stated that people should be allowed to decide whether they should be associated with Madhya Pradesh or Bihar.  These intense political activities of the Christians under the leadership of foreign Missionaries created a sense of apprehension and consequently the non-Christian organization called the Praja Mandal mobilized their resources to counteract this movement.  A few meetings were called and addressed by this party on or about the 23rd of February.  Rev. J. Lakra called a session of the All-India Adiwasi Maha Sabha at Ranchi on the 26th of February and delegates from Orissa, Chhattisgarh States and Bihar attended it. Mr. Jaipal Singh, who was elected President of the Maha Sabha criticized the Bihar Government for splitting the tribal people and emphasised that the salvation of the Adiwasis lay in the creation of a separate province including the States of Chhattisgarh.  He proposed to raise and send 1,000 volunteers for propaganda purposes.