Centre rules out enacting anti-conversion law amid BJP's anti-'Love Jihad' campaign

In a massive development on Tuesday, the Ministry of Home Affairs made it clear that the Centre is not planning to bring an anti-conversion legislation to curb interfaith marriages. MoS Home G Kishan Reddy made this revelation in response to an unstarred question by 5 Lok Sabha MPs- Mohammad Jawed, Anto Antony, TN Prathapan, K Sudhakaran and A Challakumar. This assumes significance as some BJP-ruled states have resolved to outlaw 'Love Jihad' and amended their anti-conversion laws to prohibit religious conversion by marriage. Maintaining that offences related to religious conversion are the concern of the respective state governments, Reddy noted that the law enforcement agencies take requisite action as per the existing law. 

Union MoS G Kishan Reddy informed the Lok Sabha, "'Public Order’ and ‘Police’ are State subjects as per the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution of India. Hence prevention, detection, registration, investigation and prosecution of offences related to religious conversions are primarily the concerns of the State Governments/Union Territory (UT) Administrations. Action is taken as per existing laws by the law enforcing agencies whenever instances of violation come to notice." 

Read: SC Refuses To Entertain UP Govt's Plea Seeking Transfer Of Anti-Love Jihad Ordinance Pleas

Read: Owaisi Alleges Yogi Govt 'persecuting Muslim Men' By Love Jihad Law After 91 Cases Booked

BJP's move to outlaw 'Love Jihad'

As per some organisations, 'Love Jihad' refers to inter-religious marriages where the woman converts to Islam either by force or guile in order to marry a Muslim man. In 2010, the then Kerala Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan had accused PFI and some other organisations of planning to turn the state into a Muslim-majority state by doling out money. In 2020, G Kishan Reddy told the Parliament that 'Love Jihad' is not defined under the current laws and that no such case has been reported by any of the Central agencies. 

On November 28, 2020, Uttar Pradesh became the first state to outlaw 'Love Jihad' when Governor Anandiben Patel promulgated the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Ordinance, 2020. Under this ordinance, an individual who forcefully marries a girl for the sheer purpose of converting her religion can face punishment up to 10 years in jail. Besides this, mass conversions shall be punishable with a jail term of 3-10 years and a fine of Rs.50,000 on the organizations conducting it. If someone wants to convert to another religion, he/she has to submit an application to the District Magistrate two months in advance. 

In January 2021, the Madhya Pradesh Freedom of Religion Ordinance, 2020, came into force. Incorporating stiff punishments similar to UP, it states, "No person shall convert or attempt to convert, either directly or otherwise, any other person by use of misrepresentation, allurement, use of threat of force, undue influence, coercion or marriage or by any other fraudulent means". Similarly, the BJP-led governments in Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka and Assam have also announced their intention to pass laws against forced religious conversions.

Read: In First Case Under 'Love-Jihad' Law, Man Arrested In Madhya Pradesh's Barwani Dist