By Dr.Ved Pratap Vaidik,
Indian Cultural Revolution remained unfulfilled. Though, national awareness spread after independence, many important societies were untouched from this wave. Jyotiba Phule, Swami Dayanand, Vivekanand, Raja Ram Mohan Roy started reformist movement in India, but Muslims and Christians had not witnessed similar movements.
Christians have been fettered in the slavery of past. In such a situation of inertia, people like Francis Ram Lubhaya (R L Francis) are like Martin Luther for Indian Christians. As Martin Luther King had challenged the freedom of church in Europe, Francis has been doing the same thing in India by exposing misdeeds of church establishments in India. His lastest Book ‘Bhawar mein Dalit Isaai’ written in Hindi is Released by Ambassador J C Sharma, IFS (Retd.) and me which is a huge testimony of his ideas. This book is compilation of various essays written by him time-to time.
Francis says a Dalit remains dalit forever even after conversion. There are hardly four dalit Bishops among 160 in “Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI)” Children of dalit Christians don’t get admission in missionary schools. Thousands of dalit nuns and priests have no social recognition in the dalit society.
Thousand crore rupees come each year from outside and not even one percent is spent on the development of dalit Christians. Francis has raised many revolutionary ideas in this book such as Christians should avoid eating beef and their dead bodies should be allowed to be burnt.
Catholic Bishops should be elected democratically in India and not by Vatican/ Rome. He has also protested conversion through fear and greed. He has exposed characters of priests and tortures being done over women within church system. R L Francis says dalit Christians should first get rightful place in the Christians society if they have to get reservation.
(By Dr.Ved Pratap Vaidik is an Eminent Journalist, Ideologue and Political Thinker, Social Activist & Orator)