Gujarat Assembly passes Bill against religious conversion through 'marriage, allurements'

As promised during the recently held local body poll campaigns, Chief Minister Vijay Rupani-led BJP government on Thursday got a Bill passed in the Assembly to amend the Gujarat Freedom of Religion Act, 2003 to curb forced religious conversions through "marriage" and other "allurements".

The Bill has provision of imprisonment from 3 to 5 years for forcible "conversion by marriage, or by getting a person married, or by aiding a person to get married" , while 4 to 7 years in case the victim is a woman, minor or people from scheduled caste and scheduled tribe.

The proposal also targets institutions involved in religious conversion. The draft Bill stated that maximum punishment in such cases will be up to 10 years and fine of Rs 5 lakh on each members of the organisations involved.

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Minister of State for Home Pradipsinh Jadeja tabled the Bill in the assembly where he argued in favour of the Bill by stating, "In society, daughters are like ocean of love. It is important and our moral responsibility to keep them safe. Earlier to stop cows from going into the hands of slaughterers and to stop cow slaughter, we brought special law and now, to stop daughters from going into the hands of jihadis, we have brought a law in connection with Love Jihad. In Hindu religion, both the daughter and the cow are considered sacred."

Although the Bill does not mention the term "Love Jihad" in the draft, the minister used the term multiple times during the debate. This was also pointed out by the leader of opposition in the assembly, Paresh Dhanani while criticising the Bill. Congress MLA Imran Khedwala tore the draft Bill in protest against. The clearance of the Bill triggered protest from Congress legislators amid several controversial remarks made by BJP ministers in the house in favour of the Bill. Many of the leaders took names of famous interfaith couples to prove their point against and in favour of the Bill.

In the Bill, the definition of "allurement" has been broadened by inserting words such as "better lifestyle, divine blessings or otherwise" so that people who offer to give any person "better lifestyle, divine blessings or otherwise" may be punished under the provision of the said Act.

In the 2003 Act, allurement amounts to "gift or gratification either in cash or kind and a grant of any material benefit, monetary or otherwise." The amendment also defines acts of "impersonating by false name, surname, religious symbol or otherwise" as fraudulent means. Family courts will have power to declare marriages of such nature as void.

The Rupani government has added a new section in the Act that gives authority to any aggrieved person related by blood to lodge FIR. Amendment has also been proposed in the Bill "to include certain persons as specified therein, shall be deemed to have taken part in committing the offence in addition to the person who actually does any act which constitutes the offence and shall be charged as if he has actually committed the said offence under the said Act."