Arya Kendriya Sabha with close links to the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, on Thursday showcased Mahender Pal, a former Moulvi from Meerut, at a ceremony at the Ramlila Maidan here.

Pal said he was converted on November 30, 1983 in Meerut. “On December 25 that year, I addressed the Sabha [annual meet to commemorate Swami Shradhanand’s death] in New Delhi. [More than] 30 years after that, they have brought me here,” he said.

However, Pal’s speech was cut short by the organizers. “People are invited on the stage but what they say is often their personal view,” Vinay Arya, secretary of the Sabha’s Delhi chapter later said, distancing the Sabha from Pal’s speech.

On the sidelines, Pal said there were others in the gathering who had been converted to Hinduism. “Vedic dharma is the only dharma. The rest are communities,” he said. Asked if he had any RSS affiliations, Pal said: “I am involved with all Hindu organisations. They call me to preach the truth.” He said he had been an Imam for three years before he became a Hindu at the age of 32.

The Sabha passed a resolution seeking an anti-conversion law and decided to make a representation to the Home Minister. It also resolved to end casteism, which it said was another thrust area of the Arya Samaj movement.

VHP National spokesperson Vinod Bansal who was present on the stage later said: “ Ghar vapsi is an original movement started by Swami Shradhanand in 1919. He was killed on December 23, 1926 by a Muslim fanatic because of that. Ghar vapsi cannot be done without the Arya Samaj. The Sangh or VHP can only mobilise people.” An RSS leader who was also present on the stage said: “This was not an official RSS function. But the Sangh and the Arya Samaj are in consonance on the issue of conversion.”