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Celebration of Tribal and Adivasi Sunday at MBC Bible College, Hyderabad.

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adivasiTribal and Adivasi Sunday was celebrated at MBC Bible College, Hyderabad on 7th of August 2016. It was an enlightening evening, the whole community gathered at the academic centre to participate and celebrate through this worship.

 It was a enriching experience to the whole community to know about various tribal and adivasi groups in India. A power point presentation was made to educate the community about the rich culture and tradition of various tribes in India.  MBC community remembered the life and living style of the tribal and adivasi people amidst of the discrimination and subjugation they face. An attempt was made not to romanticize the plight of the tribals but to understand the resistive modes they employed for their survival in midst of struggle.

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Observance of Black Day on August 10th, 2016

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August 10th is observed every year as ‘Black Day’ by the member Churches of National Council of Churches in India, Theological institutions and Christian organisations across India demanding the deletion of the infamous Presidential Order 1950, Paragraph 3, which excludes Christian and Muslim Dalits from the Scheduled Caste list.

The foundation of state discrimination against Christian Dalits was laid in the 1930s when the then British India Government passed the “Scheduled Caste (SC) Act 1936”. This Act made only ‘Hindu’ Dalits eligible for protective discrimination (SC reservation) and deprived Dalits of other religious faiths, including Christian Dalits from it. In post independent India, the “Presidential Order (SC) 1950” was very similar to the Act of 1936, denying again protective discrimination for Dalit converts to Christianity. This clearly violates the principle of equality and religious freedom guaranteed in the Indian Constitution – Articles 14, 15 and 25. The argument of the Government very often has been that since Christianity is an egalitarian religion where caste has no place, the question of granting protective discrimination to Christian Dalits does not arise! This argument is not just simplistic but ill-motivated. It is a universally known truth, a fact even amply proved by several Central and State Government-appointed Commissions that the phenomenon of caste is so pervasive and wide spread that it has made deep inroads in all religious communities in the country, without exception. Subsequent to the Presidential Order of 1950, the Government of India brought in amendments and granted protective discrimination (SC reservation) to Sikh Dalits and Neo Buddhists, but the plea of Christian and Muslim Dalits has remained a cry in the wilderness until now. The Government of India appointed a National Commission for Religious and Linguistic Minorities to investigate the demand of Christian and Muslim Dalits on 29 October, 2004. Ranganath Mishra, Head of Commission submitted the Commission Statement on 21 May, 2007. According to the Commission Report, paragraph 3 of the Constitution’s Order 1950 should be deleted from the Constitution in order to bring Equality and Justice for Christian and Muslim Dalits. However the Central Government kept silent when 12 state governments along with Union Territories and several political parties had endorsed the proposal to delete Paragraph 3 from the Constitution of India.

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Tribal and Adivasi Sunday-2016 Celebrated Across India

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The lives of Tribals and Adivasis in India are always an intertwining of struggles and celebrations. Over the years Tribal and Adivasi Sunday has been observed in many parts of our country to sensitize the Indian churches to break down barriers that separate indigenous people from other communities and to express solidarity with the struggles of our Tribal and Adivasi brothers and sisters. The member churches of the National Council of Churches in India and Theological Colleges in India celebrated Tribal and Adivasi Sunday all across the country on Sunday, the 7th of August 2016 and also on following Sundays. The theme for the celebration was, “Towards Just and inclusive Communities: Visions and Voices of Tribals and Adivasis”.

Celebration in All Saints Cathedral, St. Thomas Church and AHM 1840 Church, CNI, Nagpur:

1-1Rev. Dr. Hmingthansanga, General Secretary of All India Sunday School Association preached at All Saints Cathedral CNI Church on Luke 10. In his sermon he emphatically asked  “Who is my neighbour?’’ and highlighted the problems faced by Tribal, Adivasis and Dalits in today’s context.
Categorizing Tribals and Adivasis as inferior or backward, marginalising and discriminating on any ground is a sin before the creator God as God has created all human beings in God’s own image, said Mr. Pradip Bansrior, Executive Secretary-Commission on Dalits, Tribals and Adivasis during the Tribal and Adivasi Sunday worship at St. Thomas CNI Church, Nagpur on 7th August 2016.
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STATEMENT. NCCI STRONGLY CONDEMNS ATROCITIES AGAINST DALITS IN INDIA

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PRESS RELEASE | STATEMENT

The National Council of Churches in India, meeting as a General Body in Chennai on August 12, 2016, strongly condemned  the growing atrocities against dalits in India:

National Council of Churches in India expresses its grave concern over the vehement hate campaigns and brutal attacks on Dalits in different parts of India. We condemn the perpetrators, cow vigilante groups and the right wing fundamentalists who take the law in their hands and torment the Dalits in our country. Serious cognizance must be taken of the hate campaigns manifesting in their most recent forms such as the activities of ‘Cow-killers’ and restrictions sought to be imposed on ‘Cow-meat-eaters’. This is an extreme form of modern-day practice of untouchability and discrimination.

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Black Day Observance at NCCI Campus, Nagpur

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Black day PicAll NCCI Staff members observed “Black Day” on August 10, 2016 at the NCCI Campus, Nagpur to  protest about the continual negligence of the government to the cry for the rights of Dalit Christians and Muslims in the country.  In his address, Mr. Pradip Bansrior, Executive Secretary- Dalit and Tribal/ Adivasi Concerns,  highlighted the injustice related to the issue and lamented that the Civil Writ Petition 180/2004 in the Honorable Supreme Court of India praying for the deletion of paragraph 3 of the Presidential Order 1950 has been pending in the Supreme Court of India for the past 12 years, since the Government has not yet replied to the Supreme court.

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National Council of Churches in India congratulates Mr. Bezwada Wilson

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WILSON

Mr. Bezwada Wilson (Picture Source: Indian Express)

National Council of Churches in India congratulates Mr. Bezwada Wilson, 50 year old renowned campaigner for abolition of the dehumanising practice of manually cleaning human excreta and toilets, being honoured with the Ramon Magsaysay Award 2016 for “asserting the inalienable right to a life of human dignity.”

Mr. Wilson is the National Convener of the Safai Karmachari Andolan and a member of Church of South India. A Dalit born into a family of manual scavengers in Karnataka, Wilson had seen his parents clean toilets as a boy. His first questions about the inhumane system of manual scavenging, and on why only Dalits were forced to carry night soil for dumping at designated spots cropped up when he was in fourth standard in school.Being a Dalit, Wilson was discriminated against, looked down upon as a child. He was treated as an outcast in school and acutely aware of his family’s lot. Although he was spared the labour of manual scavenging and given a chance to pursue higher education, the profession followed by his family and caste haunted his identity as a teenager. The profession, though outlawed by the Indian Constitution in 1993, is still the primary occupation of over 180,000 Dalit families, according to the 2011 census data.

Wilson channeled his anger against the inhumane system into a crusade to eradicate manual scavenging. His life and work has contributed in a big way to the  movement  for eradication of manual scavenging in society. Taking cognizance of Wilson’s work in emancipation of manual scavengers, the Magsaysay Award has also flagged manual scavenging as a dehumanizing practice that must be eradicated. This award aims at detaching manual scavenging and sanitary work from Dalits, in the larger context of reforming the caste system, by pushing government agencies to replace manual scavenging with mechanization.

Pradip Bansrior

Executive Secretary

Dalit and Tribal/Adivasi Concerns

National Council of Churches in India

Protest and Street Theatre Campaign in Nagpur against injustices to Dalits

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DALIT PROTEST PRADIP

In  recent times,  a series of atrocities on Dalit youths and women all over India have terrorized the entire nation. NCCI’s Dalit Concerns Programme and Vidarbha Centre for Labour Concerns along with Bahujan Rangbhumi thought it best to to voice out the issue in the press and take it to the streets. A Press Conference was organised at the Tilak Patrakaar Bhavan on the 28th   July 2016. This was followed on 30th July 2016 by a protest Dharna and a street Theatre depicting the atrocities on Dalits and challenging the people to rise up to the occasion.

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Statement condemning atrocities against Dalits by cow vigilante groups in Una, Gujarat

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Almost 24 dalits 800x480_IMAGE55723381have attempted to end their lives since July 11, 2016. Violent protests by Dalits have been taking place in Gujarat demanding stern action against the cow vigilante group members who publicly flogged a Dalit family and brutally beaten up seven Dalit men for allegedly skinning a dead cow in Una in Gir Somnath district of Saurashtra region on July 11, 2016. The victims’ contention was that they were just skinning a dead cow and had not killed it, whereas the accused alleged these dalits were involved in cow slaughter.
As many as 200 cow vigilante groups have sprung up Gujarat. They have become a law and order problem in Gujarat because of their aggression and the way they take law into their hands. With names such as Gau Raksha Samiti, Gau Raksha Ekta Samiti, they have percolated from taluka to even village level and the groups take law into their hands to deal with minorities and Dalits who run meat businesses.

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Tribal and Adivasi Sunday Celebration on 7th August 2016

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tribal posterRespected Ecumenical Colleagues,

Warm greetings from National Council of Churches in India!

Over the years Tribal and Adivasi Sunday has been celebrated in many parts of our country invsensitizing the local congregation on Tribal and Adivasi Concerns. Thanks to the enormous support we have received from across the churches, dioceses, parishes and institutions in celebrating this special Sunday. This year also we are inviting you to celebrate Tribal and Adivasi Sunday on 7 th August 2016 in your churches/local parishes/institutions.
We are sending you hard copies of posters and a special order of worship for the day. You may please take the freedom to use the entire worship order and translate it in your vernacular language or adapt parts of it. We sincerely hope that the observance of this special NCCI Tribal and Adivasi Sunday will be an enriching one in our faith affirmation and commitment and for widening the horizon of our ecumenical journey.
We would appreciate if you send a brief report along with a few photos of the celebration to
the undersigned.
Let us join to celebrate Tribal and Adivasi Sunday on 7 th August 2016.
Thanking you in anticipation.
With regards,
In Christ,
Pradip Bansrior
Executive Secretary
Dalit and Tribal/Adivasi Concerns
National Council of Churches in India

‘Black Day’ observance on 10th August 2016

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Black Day Poster FinalDear Friends,
 
Like every year, National Council of Churches in India encourages the member Churches and organisations to proactively participate in observing the ‘Black Day’ on 10th August to raise our protest to the continual negligence of the government to the cry for the rights of Dalit Christians in the country.
The infamous Presidential (Scheduled Caste) Order 1950 was signed on 10th August 1950 by the then President of India which says “No person who professes a religion other than Hinduism shall be deemed to be a member of the scheduled caste” which was later amended to include Sikhs (1956) and Buddhists (1990) in the Scheduled Caste net. But this law, as we are all aware of, keeps the Dalit Muslims and Dalit Christians from the fold of Scheduled Caste list.
National Council of Churches in India requests you to kindly observe the ‘Black Day’ by organising protest meeting/ rallies/ demonstrations/ hunger fasts/ submitting memoranda/ candle vigils/ special prayers and other appropriate programmes in your church/institution to express our solidarity with the suffering Christians of Scheduled caste origin.
The member Churches and organisations of NCCI are also requested to wear black badges on 10th August 2016 and place the posters, which are sent along with this letter in your notice boards. We would appreciate if you send couple of photos and a brief report of the observance to the undersigned.
Thanking you in anticipation,
With regards,
In Christ,
 
 
Pradip Bansrior
Executive Secretary
Dalit and Tribal/Adivasi Concerns
National Council of Churches in India