Journalist Aditya Menon, on November 25, had taken to X to share that he had completed Umrah, the Muslim pilgrimage, expressing his heartfelt gratitude.
However, the post received massive backlash from different communities, questioning the depth of his belief, while sporting the name that he does.
Some asked him questions such as “Does Allah accept you as Aditya Menon?”
Others even questioned the validity of his pilgrimage, while some simply showed plain bigotry.
The response led him to issue a clarification about his faith and address the hate comments.
Menon, a journalist at The Quint, clarified that there is no hard and fast rule claiming that one must change their name after conversion. Citing many Western, Thai, and Indonesian converts who choose to keep their original names, he stated that it is not a necessity.
Responding to claims that “You can’t do Umrah with this name,” he reiterated that completed the pilgrimage without any issues.
“This is important for conversion to any faith in India. Anyone doing so should make an affidavit, get it signed and notarised. This matters for pilgrimage but also for last rites. Professing, adopting any faith is our Constitutional right. Let no one make it a crime.”
It is also factually accurate that changing one’s name is not automatic, but rather a matter of personal choice.
He added that he first began exploring both Islam and Sikhism, and was a practising Hindu till his teenage years. He had accepted Islam in 2007.
Menon further addressed the claims of converting only for marriage, stating that “My conversion was over 10 years before marriage or even meeting my wife.”
The issue seems to shine a light on how doubt is first thrown before acceptance.
