Join us on law against forced conversions, Shah tells parties

'Ghar waapsi' not a govt programme, says BJP chief

BJP national president Amit Shah on Saturday extended an open invitation to political entities to support the saffron party's proposal to enact a law to stop forced conversions.

 Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Shah said his party had never supported forced conversions, and that it was keen to enact an anti-conversion law. 

“We wanted the so-called secular parties to extend their support to this legislation. However, till today (Saturday) no party has come forward. I once again extend an invitation to them to support us,” said Shah, who was in the City to attend the core-committee meeting of the BJP's state unit. 

On Vishwa Hindu Parishad’s “ghar waapsi”, Shah said it was not a government programme. On reports that he Congress had set its eyes on upper-caste Hindu votes—a traditional bastion of the BJP—by setting up a platform christened the Bharatiya Hindu Samaj, Shah said: “Everybody has the right to form such outfits. People are free to form such groups.”

On government formation in Jammu and Kashmir, the BJP president said all options were open for the party, and that a final decision would be taken soon.  He also said Indian security forces have been retaliating strongly whenever Pakistan resorted to ceasefire violations along the Indo-Pak border, and that they would continue to take similar action. He was responding to a question on increased ceasefire violations by Pakistan in the northern state.  To another question regarding the Opposition’s allegation that he had been given a clean chit in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter case after the NDA government came to power, Shah said the verdict was given by court, which it did not fall under the ambit of the government.