AGARTALA: Tribal Suraksha Manch (JSM) leader Prakash Singh Uike has come under fire from the North East Catholic Research Forum (NECARF) for his allegations against churches in Tripura.
In a strongly worded statement released on Thursday, NECARF expressed its unwavering commitment to principles of secularism and democracy, condemning Uike’s comments for their potential to disrupt peace and harmonious coexistence among people of different faiths.
“As a forum always standing firm alongside other progressive organizations in defending the principles of secularism and democracy—the bedrock of our nation—we strongly condemn such misleading remarks and consider them to have the potential to disturb peace and harmonious co-existence among people of different faiths,” read the statement.
The forum reminded Uike and JSM leaders that even Prime Minister Narendra Modi had acknowledged the significant contributions of the Christian community in nation-building during a Christmas programme on December 25.
“”He underlined how, from the time of the freedom struggle to the present days, the Christian community has contributed richly to nation-building efforts, particularly in the field of education, health-care and social services to the poor and needy, and called upon the Christian leaders to continue doing the same to ensure the nation move forward,” the statement further added.
Uike had claimed that churches are “destroying indigenous identity”, prompting NECARF to denounce his remarks as a “veiled attempt” to undermine India’s rich religious and cultural diversity.
Uike, on December 26, had accused the Church stating that they would oppose attempts to convert tribal families.
He had predicted a future where people would need to visit museums to see the cultures of the Reang and Tripuri tribes, blaming the Church for eroding the unique identity of tribals through conversions.
Addressing a rally, Uike had argued that those who converted to Christianity lost their Scheduled Tribe (ST) status and were deprived of constitutional benefits.
