Ahead of the assembly elections in Kerala, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has promised to enact a law against ‘love jihad’ in the state if it is voted to power.
Kerala BJP president K Surendran has said ‘love jihad (interfaith marriage)’ has become a worrisome trend in the state and claimed that even Christian leaders have raised concerns about forced conversions.'Love Jihad': Madhya Pradesh government proposes 10-year jail term in draft bill
The Kerala BJP leader also accused the ruling Left Democratic Front and the United Democratic Front led by the Congress party of inaction, reported India Today.
Surendran added: “Despite the BJP and churches expressing their views against love jihad, the Left and Right fronts are not even acknowledging it. Even in minority rights, there is discrimination in Kerala. Why the ruling and opposition parties in Kerala have not made their stand clear despite the fact that the Christian churches have complained to the Prime Minister that the Christians are not getting the population benefits when the Muslim community is getting undeserved rights.”Uttar Pradesh Police made 51 arrests in one month under ‘love jihad’ law: Report
The Yogi Adityanath-led BJP government in Uttar Pradesh was the first to introduce the love jihad law in 2020. The law forbids religious conversions done on the “false pretext of love” using “misrepresentation, force, undue influence, coercion, allurement or by any fraudulent means”.