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a contextual missiology of the spirit - eTheses Repository ...

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<strong>of</strong>ficial status <strong>of</strong> National Minorities. 1 According to <strong>the</strong> 2001 census, <strong>the</strong>se five<br />

religious minority communities constitute 18.42 percent <strong>of</strong> India’s total<br />

population. The largest group are Muslims (13.4 percent), while Christians make<br />

up only 2.3 percent. 2 Rajasthan has 10.06 percent <strong>of</strong> its total population from<br />

religious minority communities. Since Pentecostals belong to <strong>the</strong> Christian<br />

community, <strong>the</strong>y are a minority group in Rajasthan. Although <strong>the</strong> Indian<br />

constitution provides equality and justice in every aspect for minorities, in reality<br />

<strong>the</strong>y struggle to maintain <strong>the</strong>ir rights.<br />

4.1.1. Minority Status in India<br />

No Indian Constitutional document gives a clear definition <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> term ‘minority.’<br />

The Indian Constitution refers to minorities, and speaks <strong>of</strong> those ‘based on<br />

religion or language.’ 3 However, religion is <strong>the</strong> most popular category used to<br />

define minority status. Even today <strong>the</strong> debate on <strong>the</strong> definition <strong>of</strong> minority is on-<br />

going. For example, Justice Jagannatha Misra, who is <strong>the</strong> present Religion-<br />

Language Minority National Commission Chairman, asked <strong>the</strong> central<br />

government to ensure that <strong>the</strong> Schedule Tribe (ST) reservation should not be<br />

based on religion. 4 The Constitution <strong>of</strong> India guarantees equal rights to all<br />

citizens. The Preamble <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Constitution (as amended in 1976) declares that <strong>the</strong><br />

State is ‘Secular,’ and that every citizen <strong>of</strong> India has <strong>the</strong> ‘liberty <strong>of</strong> thought,<br />

1<br />

James Massey, Minorities in a Democracy: The Indian Experience (Delhi: Manohar Publishers,<br />

1995), 27.<br />

2<br />

http://www.censusindia.gov.in/Census_Data_2001/India_at_glance/religion.aspx (accessed 02<br />

October 2008).<br />

3<br />

National Commission for Minorities, ‘About NCM,’ http://ncm.nic.in/genesis.html, (accessed 12<br />

November 2006). This is <strong>the</strong> <strong>of</strong>ficial web site <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> National Commission for Minorities set up by<br />

<strong>the</strong> government <strong>of</strong> India.<br />

4<br />

http//www.deepika.com/Archives/archivepage.asp/ (accessed 23 May 2007).<br />

168

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