- Feb 5, 2002
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MUMBAI – A Catholic school in western India has requested police protection after members of a Hindu nationalist group known for staging aggressive “reconversion” ceremonies announced the intention to “by hook or crook” conduct a Hindu ritual known as Saraswati Puja at the school on Ash Wednesday.
Saraswati Puja is a ritual performed in honour of the Hindu goddess Saraswati, considered the embodiment of wisdom and creativity. It’s typically carried out on the Hindu festival of Basant Panchami that marks preparations for the arrival of spring, and which falls this year on 14 February, the same date as Ash Wednesday.
The individuals who said they plan to conduct the rite identified themselves as members of the Hindu Jagran Manch, which was founded in 1982 and is known for its efforts to resist the influence of other religions and to promote the “reconversion” of Muslims and Christians in India to Hinduism.
According to media reports, a member of the Hindu Jagran Manch argued that the school should permit the celebration of the Saraswati Puja ritual at the Don Bosco School in Dhajanagar, on the outskirts of Udaipur, because the majority of its students are Hindu. The group also said they would seek support from the local government to go ahead if the school refused permission.
Continued below.
catholicherald.co.uk
Saraswati Puja is a ritual performed in honour of the Hindu goddess Saraswati, considered the embodiment of wisdom and creativity. It’s typically carried out on the Hindu festival of Basant Panchami that marks preparations for the arrival of spring, and which falls this year on 14 February, the same date as Ash Wednesday.
The individuals who said they plan to conduct the rite identified themselves as members of the Hindu Jagran Manch, which was founded in 1982 and is known for its efforts to resist the influence of other religions and to promote the “reconversion” of Muslims and Christians in India to Hinduism.
According to media reports, a member of the Hindu Jagran Manch argued that the school should permit the celebration of the Saraswati Puja ritual at the Don Bosco School in Dhajanagar, on the outskirts of Udaipur, because the majority of its students are Hindu. The group also said they would seek support from the local government to go ahead if the school refused permission.
Continued below.
Hindu nationalists threaten Catholic school over Ash Wednesday observance - Catholic Herald
MUMBAI – A Catholic school in western India has requested police protection after members of a Hindu nationalist group known for staging aggressive “reconversion” ceremonies announced the intention to “by hook or crook” conduct a Hindu ritual known as Saraswati Puja at the school on Ash...
catholicherald.co.uk
