MP Govt unveils contours of anti-Love Jihad bill, guilty face up to 10 years in jail

On Saturday, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan chaired a high-level meeting on 'MP Freedom of Religion Act, 2020'. A bill in this regard will be introduced during Winter session of MP Assembly. At meeting, Chouhan promised that strict action will be taken against forceful religious conversion or tempting someone to do so through marri.

Moreover, several aspects of aforesaid legislation were revealed in public domain. For instance, Section 3 of proposed bill makes it clear that person can convert or attempt to convert eir directly or orwise any or person from one religion to ar by use or practice of misrepresentation, force, undue influence, coercion, allurement, or by any fraudulent means or by marri. Top bureaucrats including Chief Secretary Iqbal Singh Bains and Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Dr. Rajesh Rajaura attended this meeting. 

MP government's impetus to enact a law against forced religious conversion comes in wake of several states moving to outlaw 'Love Jihad. While Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Ordinance, 2020 has already been promulgated, governments in Haryana, Assam, and Karnataka too have promised to enact a law against 'Love Jihad' very soon. As per some organisations, 'Love Jihad' refers to inter-religious marris where woman converts to Islam eir by force or guile in order to marry a Muslim man.

Read: Love Jihad Legislation In UP & Uttarakhand Challenged In SC; PIL Hints At Potential Misuse

Here are key aspects of proposed bill

• In case of religious conversion, affected person or his/her parents or blood relatives can file a complaint.
• offence will be cognizable, n-bailable, and can be taken up by Sessions Court.
• Such a case can be investigated only by a police officer of Sub Inspector rank or above.
• burden of proving that conversion has t been done by force will be on accused.
• marri conducted with intention of conversion will be considered null and void. 
• person can attempt to abet or conspire religious conversion.  
• If a person wants to convert to ar religion, he/she has to submit a letter of declaration to District Magistrate one month in advance. 
• For violating Section 3, an individual faces imprisonment of 1-5 years and a fine of t less than Rs.25,000.
• If victim is a mir, woman, or belongs to SC/ST, guilty can be punished with 2-10 years imprisonment besides a minimum fine of Rs.50,000.
• An attempt to hide one's religion will be punishable by imprisonment of 3-10 years and a fine of at least Rs.50,000.
• Attempting mass religious conversions (of two or more persons) will attract imprisonment of 5-10 years and a fine of at least Rs.1 lakh.

Read: First FIR Filed Under 'Love Jihad' Law In UP's Bareilly, A Day After Approval Of Ordinance