Gujarat govt passes a 'stricter' anti-Love Jihad law

Gandhinagar, April 2: Gujarat government has passed the 'Gujarat Freedom of Religion Act, 2021' with a majority bringing more stringent punishment against forced religious conversions through marriage. "Gujarat Freedom of Religion (Amendment) Bill, 2021 has been passed with a majority in Gujarat Vidhan Sabha," state Home Minister Pradipsinh Jadeja said on Thursday.

 

 

In his speech while introducing the Bill in the House, Jadeja said, “Some intellectuals are arguing that it is a fundamental right of an adult girl as to whom she should marry. And that it is a right given by the Constitution. But Hindu Ramcharit Manas and Muslims’ religious book Quran, too, says not to break anybody’s trust. Marriage done with trickery is as good as breaking trust. This government firmly believes that trickery cannot exist with fundamental right. Marriage done by hiding name is trickery.”

 

“I say it clearly that people doing such activity are those who deprived us from the darshan of Lord Ram for centuries, who tried to damage the country from within through cross border terrorism, who took lives of our soldiers through terrorist acts… who did blasts in Mumbai in 1992, who launched attacks on country’s Parliament… who tried to defame Indian government by opposing Citizenship Amendment Act, who have aligned with the tukde-tukde gang,” said Jadeja.

 

After the passing this bill, Gujarat became the third state after Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh to make a law against 'love jihad'. Earlier in February, the BJP-led the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Religious Conversion Bill, 2021 was passed by the state Legislative Assembly by voice vote. Following it,Madhya Pradesh assembly also passed the Freedom of Religion Bill 2021 in March this year.

 

 

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on February 4 this year clarified that the term 'love jihad' is not defined under the existing laws and no such case has been reported so far. No such case was reported by any of the central agencies yet.