AAP urges PM Modi to break silence on religious conversions issue

Expressing serious concern over the religious conversions taking place in the country, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Monday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to break his silence over the issue and give a strong statement against the same.

"The reports from Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, and Punjab are very worrying. Strangely, the BJP and the Prime Minister's Office is silent on this," AAP leader Yogendra Yadav told ANI here.

Yadavalso expressed surprise over Prime Minister Modi's continued silence over the issue, comparing him with his predecessor Dr. Manmohan Singh.

"Earlier, we thought that the Prime Minister [Dr Singh] was affected with the syndrome of being silent about all the major issues. This Prime Minister, who clearly doesn't suffer from this problem, is very strangely silent," he said.

The AAP leader further hoped that Prime Minister Modi will uphold the secular fabric of the country and allay the fears of the minority communities.

"Minorities in this country are apprehensive. Clearly, the assurance has to come from the highest political office of this country and there had been no such assurance," Yadav said.

"This is very disconcerting and I do hope for the sake of the country, for the sake of its secular Constitution that the Prime Minister's Office will clarify the situation," he added.

Earlier in the day, the Rajya Sabha failed to conduct legislative business for the sixth day after leaders of the opposition parties demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi to make a statement on the conversion issue. The opposition also alleged that the government had backtracked on its promises on the issues of black money and unemployment.