Haryana assembly passes anti-conversion law
Haryana’s anti-conversion bill, a controversial piece of legislation, was passed by the state assembly with a voice vote on Tuesday despite the Opposition Congress citing valid grounds to hold it back and refer it to a select committee of the assembly for wider deliberations
Haryana’s anti-conversion bill, a controversial piece of legislation, was passed by the state assembly with a voice vote on Tuesday despite the Opposition Congress citing valid grounds to hold it back and refer it to a select committee of the assembly for wider deliberations.
The Congress members also staged a walk-out in protest against passage of the bill. The Haryana Prevention of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Bill-2022 seeks to prohibit religious conversions effected through misrepresentation, force, undue influence, coercion, allurement or by any fraudulent means or by marriage by making it an offence.
Congress MLAs, led by leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda and Tosham MLA Kiran Choudhry, asked when there are provisions in the Indian Penal Code (IPC) to take action against forced conversions, what is the need to enact a special anti-conversion law.
Justifying the need of the legislation, chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar said it is aimed at curbing forced conversions only by instilling fear in minds of the perpetrators. Khattar said 127 FIRs for religious conversion were registered in last four years. Most of the forced conversion cases were in five districts – Yamunanagar, Panipat, Gurugram, Palwal and Faridabad.
The chief minister said a person can change religion as per his/her own free will, but not do so forcibly or using allurement.
Congress’ Bhupinder Singh Hooda said that was precisely his point –when FIRs have been registered under the existing laws, there was no need for a new law. Khattar, however, said the anti-conversion law is more stringent.
Kiran Choudhry said such a law will deepen the social divide and is in violation of the Constitution. “Powers under the law will be misused,” she said.
Congress MLA Raghuvir Singh Kadian said there is no urgency for bringing this bill. The bill reeks of a policy of divisiveness and is not good for the future generations. Kadian said it should be sent to the select committee of the Haryana assembly.
Pointing out that definition of allurement in the bill also included divine pleasure, Choudhry said it was “ridiculous”. “One practices a faith for attainment of divine pleasure but terming it an allurement is ridiculous,” she said.
Choudhry added that the definition of conversion in the bill meant renouncing one religion and adopting another but does not include return of a person to the religion professed or being professed by parents or grandparents of a person.
“Right to freedom of religion is a fundamental right protected by the Constitution. The bill is an invasion of the personal domain of an individual,” she said.
The state government on Tuesday added a new provision in its controversial anti-conversion bill providing for punishment for anyone converting or attempting to convert minors, women and persons belonging to scheduled castes and tribes.
While the statement of objects and reasons of the bill spoke about greater punishment for conversions in respect of minors, women, persons from Scheduled Castes and Tribes, the bill introduced in the assembly on March 4 did not contain any such provision.
The omission was highlighted by Hindustan Times in a March 7 news report, ‘Experts pick holes in Haryana’s anti-conversion bill’.
The new provision brought through a notice of amendment provides for imprisonment in the range of 4-10 years and a fine of not less than ₹3 lakh for anyone converting or attempting to convert minors, women and persons belonging to Scheduled Castes and Tribes.
The statement of objects and reasons of the bill said the Constitution conferred on each individual the fundamental right to profess, practice and propagate their religion. However, the individual right to freedom of conscience and religion cannot be extended to construe a collective right to proselytise; for the right to religious freedom belongs equally to the person converting and the individual sought to be converted.
Still, there have been umpteen cases of religious conversions, both mass and individual. Obviously, such incidents have been hotly debated, more so in a multi-religious society, such as ours.
There is presence of pseudo-social organisations with a hidden agenda to convert the vulnerable sections of other religions. There have been instances when gullible people have been converted by offering allurement or under undue influence. Some have been forced to convert to other religions, it said.