Nation: 40 Muslim families convert to Hinduism in Haryana's Hisar district.

The last rites of an 80-year-old woman were performed according to Hindu customs by 40 Muslim families who converted to Hinduism in Bithmara village of Hisar district in Haryana. On 18th April, 35 members of six Muslim families also took up Hinduism at Jind's Danoda Kalan village. The families of Bithmara, before independence, used to live in Danoda Kalan village. 

The son of the deceased 80-year-old mother, Satbir, claimed, his Hindu ancestors were forcefully converted to Islam during the Mughal rule of Aurangzeb and that he belonged to the Doom caste. He also denied converting to Hindutva under pressure and said no villager misbehaved with anyone of them. The Village sarpanch remained unavailable for comment. Although Majid, a young man from the village revealed, "Now that many people are educated, and they have convinced everyone to do this (change religion). It is only when we bury our dead that the villagers looked at us differently. Therefore, looking at the future of our children, we decided to convert." 

On talking about the conversions in Bithmara and Danoda Kalan villages, Muslim Welfare Organization state president Harfool Khan Bhatti said," The conversion of Danoda Kalan village happened to avail the benefit of the scheduled caste category as they belong to the Doom caste." According to a 1951 notification, Muslims and Christians of Doom caste cannot avail the reservation benefit thereby providing the benefit only to the Hindus of the Doom caste. 

Bhatti further pointed out, "When the case of Mohammad Sadiq went to the Supreme Court, in lieu with him becoming an MLA on Congress ticket from a reserved seat in Ludhiana, Sadiq won the case by saying that he was a Mazhabi Sikh and not a Muslim."