Maharashtra cabinet clears controversial ‘love jihad’ bill targeting forced religious conversions

The Maharashtra cabinet has approved a draft Freedom of Religion Bill, commonly referred to as the “love jihad” bill, aimed at preventing religious conversions through marriage or alleged coercion.

The proposed legislation was cleared at a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and is expected to be introduced in the state legislature during the ongoing session.

According to officials, the bill seeks to address cases where religious conversion is allegedly carried out through marriage using force, fraud, misrepresentation or inducement. While the term “love jihad” is often used in public discourse, the draft legislation itself does not formally recognise the term.

Under the provisions of the bill, such conversions linked to marriage could be treated as a cognisable and non-bailable offence if families of the individuals involved object to the union and claim that the conversion occurred through coercion or allurement. The proposed law prescribes a minimum prison sentence of seven years for those found guilty.

The punishment outlined in the Maharashtra draft law is lower than similar legislation enacted in some other states. For instance, states such as Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh have introduced anti-conversion laws prescribing jail terms of up to ten years in cases involving forced religious conversion through marriage.

Officials said the bill is intended to safeguard individuals from forced conversions while ensuring that religious freedom is not misused. The government has argued that the measure is necessary to address complaints related to fraudulent or coercive religious conversions.

However, the proposed law has already drawn criticism from opposition parties and civil rights groups, who argue that such legislation could interfere with personal liberty and interfaith marriages between consenting adults.

Legal experts have also pointed out that courts in the past have emphasised that adult individuals have the constitutional right to choose their partners and religion without interference.

The draft bill will now be placed before the Maharashtra legislature for debate and approval before it can become law.