Re: [Assam] re: conversion & supreme court

[KJDeka]

In a message dated 9/13/03 11:08:47 AM Central Daylight Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:

<<They were "listed" as Hindus simply because according to the Western civilization, everybody is supposed to have a "religion". And those who are not Christians, Muslims, Buddhists or Sikhs are all basically  "listed" as Hindus.>>

First of all, whatever the tribals may have been originally, they were gradually absorbed into the Hindu fold many centuries ago, just as the tribes of Saudi Arabia and Africa were into Islam. Turning back to your comment above (those who are not Christians......listed as Hindus), why then did the British govt direct all the census officers in 1901 to mention the religion of tribals as "ANIMISM" and not "HINDUISM?" Furthermore, if one examines the census report of 1941, one will find that heads were counted community-wise instead of on the basis of religion. That is, a tribal was classified merely as one who belonged to a particular tribe.

KJD.