Guwahati, March 26: Thousands of tribal people from 30 districts of Assam took part in a massive rally in Guwahati on Sunday under the banner of RSS-affiliate Janajati Dharma Sanskriti Suraksha Manch (JDSSM) against the religious conversion of the tribal people in various parts of the state.

The main demand of the RSS-affiliate organisation is to delist tribals who have undergone religious conversion as Scheduled Tribes (ST) that entitles them to reservation of jobs and other government benefits.

The organisation also demanded an amendment to Article 342A of the Constitution of India. “Religious conversion in India is continuously posing great threats to the ST people of India since pre-independence. The conversions of tribals of Assam by foreign religions are not a new event but in the last few decades, the rate has increased drastically. Particularly the ST people are the easiest prey or victim of conversions in India mainly targeted by the highly communal theocratic foreign religious groups,” JDSSM co-convenor and working president Binud Kumbang said.

The organisation has claimed that North East has emerged as a major region of Christian concentration in India. Of 2.78 crore Christians counted in India in the 2011 Census, about 78 lakh are from the region, including Assam.

“The share of Christians in Meghalaya has continued to rise robustly from decade to decade and reached nearly 75 per cent in 2011. It seems some of the tribes in Meghalaya are still resisting conversion,” Kumbang further alleged.

Also Read: Assam signs MoU with Flybig to start intra-state flight services in NE