The Uttar Pradesh Cabinet on Tuesday cleared an ordinance to check ‘unlawful conversions’ — which some political leaders refer to as “love jihad”.
The Prohibition of Unlawful Religious Conversion Ordinance, 2020, will put the onus on the defendant to prove that conversion was not for marriage and recommends up to five years of jail term with Rs 15,000 penalty in case of ‘forceful religious conversion’. For conversions of minors and women of SC/SC community, there will be a jail term of 3-10 years with Rs 25,000 penalty.
The development comes a day after the Allahabad HC quashing an FIR lodged into allegations that a Muslim man forcefully married a Hindu woman by kidnapping her. In a big verdict, the court ruled that the right to choose a partner or live with a person of choice is a part of a citizen’s fundamental right’.
After Madhya Pradesh and Haryana, UP has become the third state to do so.
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