MP proposes 10-yr jail term for forcing interfaith marriages

November 25, 2020 21:16

The BJP-led government in Madhya Pradesh on Wednesday said it is proposing a jail term of 10 years for anyone found guilty of using marriage to force someone to change religion.

The announcement by state Home Minister Narottam Mishra came a day after Uttar Pradesh government approved a draft ordinance to curb forcible or 'dishonest' religious conversions including those for the sake of marriage, which could land violators in jail for up to 10 years.

In recent weeks, BJP-run states like Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Madhya Pradesh have revealed plans to enact laws to counter alleged attempts to convert Hindu women to Islam in the guise of marriage, which party leaders often refer to as love jihad.

Mishra told reporters that the state government has proposed a 10-year jail term for luring, threatening and forcing someone into marriage for religious conversion, in the proposed Dharm Swatantrya (Religious Freedom) Bill 2020.

The bill draft will be presented before the cabinet in the second week of December and subsequently tabled in the state assembly during its session from December 28, he added.

He said the bill will provide a five-year jail term for gurus, priests, maulvis and kazis who will conduct such marriages, and registration of organisations conducting such marriages will be cancelled.

-- PTI

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