Journalist forced to quit for her conversion to Christianity

The sub-editor of a popular Kerala daily was forced to quit her job after the management discovered her conversion to Christianity early this month.

Sreedevi Nair joined the Kochi unit of the Janmabhumi Newspaper as a probationary sub-editor on March 15, 2009.

The newspaper, alleged to be the mouthpiece of BJP in Kerala, forced Sreedevi to quit two days before her baptism, as it is "not possible for a converted person to continue with the newspaper."

Sreedevi was already married to a Christian according to the Special Marriages Act before she even joined the Malayalam newspaper.

"The management found nothing wrong with my inter-caste marriage before I joined. But, on September 30, the managing director Kummanam Rajashekharan called me to inquire about my decision to get converted," Sreedevi told The Indian Express.

She was later told that she couldn't continue working, especially "when Hindu organisations have been campaigning against 'love jehad'."

The newspaper's editor Leela Menon says: "We did not ask her to quit. She voluntarily resigned as she considered faith in Christianity more important than the job. I am personally against conversion"

Interestingly, Sreedevi says the managing editor inquired if "I could get my husband converted into Hinduism and have the marriage performed in a temple."