Panel for interfaith marriages flayed; SP MLA to move HC

Mumbai: The Maharashtra government’s decision to form a 13-member panel titled, ‘Inter-caste interfaith marriage-family coordination committee’ to dissipate any acrimony that may arise between families and women who have stepped into an interfaith or inter-caste alliance, is being condemned by rights’ activists and politicians

Mumbai:

Mumbai, India - March 1, 2020: Jitendra Awhad during inauguration of MADHA housing Mill worker Lottery 2020 at MADHA Office,Bandra in Mumbai, India, on Sunday, March 1, 2020. (Photo by Satyabrata Tripathy/Hindustan Times) (Satyabrata Tripathy/HT Photo)

The Maharashtra government’s decision to form a 13-member panel titled, ‘Inter-caste interfaith marriage-family coordination committee’ to dissipate any acrimony that may arise between families and women who have stepped into an interfaith or inter-caste alliance, is being condemned by rights’ activists and politicians. In the backdrop of the ‘love jihad’ controversy, they fear the committee will be misused against a particular community, and allege that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was using this to further polarise society.

Samajwadi Party (SP) MLA Rais Shaikh has decided to move Bombay high court against it, saying it was not a cabinet decision and the committee has no jurisdiction for looking into interfaith marriages. He also alleged that the state women and child development (WCD) minister Mangal Prabhat Lodha, helming the committee, upholds a communal ideology.

On Wednesday Lodha said that the committee will intervene only when help was sought through the helpline number, brushing away any fear that this would be an extension of ‘love jihad’. He emphasised that it was being done so that cases such as Shraddha Walkar-Aaftab Poonawala do not occur. The order was issued on Tuesday, reported by HT. Critics, however, were not easily appeased as they pointed out that it was not specified in the mandate.

The order states that the committee will check details of the married couple whenever required. It is free to check whether the marriage was officially registered or was held at a religious place; whether it was held after eloping and it can seek details of the couple from stamp duty registration department. It can seek information about the family of the woman and if it emerges that her parents are not willing to remain in contact, they will counsel them with the help of experts.

“First of all, the panel was formed without a cabinet decision and thus it has no authority to make such an intervention. The government resolution (GR) has no mention of standard operating procedure (SOP) for approaching the family. More importantly, Lodha is a communal person,” said Shaikh, who represents the Bhiwandi (East) assembly constituency. “The committee will be used as a weapon to target a community,” he added.

“It has nothing to do with ‘love jihad’. The committee will not intervene on its own. It will take steps only after checking the helpline,” Lodha said.

Criticising the committee, Sandhya Gokhale, an activist from the Mumbai-based Forum Against Oppression of Women, said, “Deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis recently said that they were considering anti-conversion law in Maharashtra. In this backdrop, the committee’s decision is like a step hastening this agenda. They will put surveillance upon all interfaith marriages by collecting their data,” Gokhale said. “They seem to be testing the water as it is not easy to bring an anti-conversion law in Maharashtra, like Uttar Pradesh and other such states.”

The Stree Mukti Andolan Samiti, another rights’ group, demanded action against the minister for intervening into the private lives of people.

“The government is taking away the democratic right and freedom of citizens. The Shinde-Fadnavis government’s ulterior motive is clear now. The panel will be used to keep special surveillance on girls or women and work towards breaking their inter-caste or interfaith marriages to maintain their so-called religious and ethnic ‘purity’,” said a statement issued by the outfit on Wednesday.

Demanding a withdrawal of this decision, Jitendra Awhad, NCP MLA, said, “Do they want to take progressive Maharashtra 200 years back? Who is the government to spy on who marries whom,” said Awhad, underscoring that the committee was anti-constitutional. Congress general secretary Sachin Sawant alleged that the BJP was trying to milk the unfortunate case of Sharddha Walkar as she was in a live-in relationship. “The government should clarify if the committee will keep surveillance on married couples or give them protection. Does the government have data on the number of interfaith marriages,” Sawant said.