New Delhi/Bhopal: After the Yogi Adityanath led-Uttar Pradesh government promulgated the new anti-conversion law, now Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s Madhya Pradesh government is in the process of bringing the ‘love jihad’ law, the Chief Minister confirmed on Monday.
The CM’s office quoted Shivraj Singh Chouhan in a Hindi tweet as saying that the state government is bringing a law to curb forced religious conversions which take place in garb of love.
Earlier, there was speculation that several BJP-ruled states will be bringing the legislation against ‘love jihad’. After the law was made official in UP, now it is underway in the BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh as well.
Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel on Saturday gave assent to an ordinance against forcible or fraudulent religious conversions that provides for imprisonment up to 10 years and a maximum fine of Rs 50,000 under different categories.
The promulgation of the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Ordinance, 2020, came four days after the Yogi Adityanath government approved the draft of the legislation which also curbs religious conversions only for the sake of marriage.
Under the law which deals with different categories of offences, a marriage will be declared “null and void” if the conversion of a woman is solely for that purpose, and those wishing to change their religion after marriage need to apply to the district magistrate.