2 months ago
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The Chhattisgarh Legislative Assembly connected Thursday (March 19, 2026) passed a caller authorities to modulate spiritual conversions. Even arsenic the State joined respective Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-ruled States that person passed akin authorities successful caller years, the Opposition boycotted the House proceedings, calling for a review.
The Chhattisgarh Dharm Swatantra Vidheyak (Freedom of Religion Bill), 2026 seeks to regenerate a 1968 instrumentality from undivided Madhya Pradesh. It holds immoderate conversion violating its provisions arsenic “illegal”, and introduces stricter penalties, including beingness imprisonment and fines up to ₹25 lakh successful circumstantial cases.
It would “stop conversions carried retired by taking vantage of people’s poverty, and deficiency of acquisition and knowledge”, Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai told journalists aft the Bill was passed.
The 58-year-old instrumentality had go inadequate successful the contiguous script “to efficaciously power the usage of force, greed and fraudulent practices for conversion from 1 religion to another. Hence, it has go indispensable to enact a broad law”, Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Sharma, who besides holds the Home portfolio, said successful the Assembly.
“No idiosyncratic shall convert, straight oregon otherwise, oregon by usage oregon signifier of glorification, misrepresentation, force, undue influence, coercion, allurement, by carnal oregon integer means, oregon by immoderate different means, to person oregon abet the conversion of immoderate idiosyncratic oregon persons from 1 religion oregon religion to another,” according to the Bill.
Redefining inducements
The Bill broadens the explanation of allurements to see monetary benefits, gifts, employment, escaped acquisition oregon aesculapian facilities, promises of amended lifestyle, oregon marriage. “Coercion”, according to the Bill, includes intelligence pressure, carnal force, oregon threats, including societal boycott. It besides proposes publishing “details of the projected spiritual conversion connected its authoritative website maintained by the Competent Authority nether this Act”, and the mounting up of peculiar courts to perceive each specified cases registered nether the projected law.
Undue power has been defined arsenic the usage of a presumption of authority, spot oregon powerfulness arising from a fiduciary relationship, existent oregon evident authority, oregon different akin circumstances, with the intent to get an undue vantage oregon benefit, to power the volition of different idiosyncratic and to induce specified idiosyncratic to enactment contrary to his escaped volition oregon champion interests.
Mass conversions, which the instrumentality defines arsenic the conversion of 2 oregon much persons, whitethorn pull imprisonment of not little than 10 years, extendable to beingness imprisonment, and fines of ₹25 lakh oregon more, portion repetition offenders whitethorn look beingness imprisonment. In different cases, penal provisions, including punishment ranging from 10 to 20 years imprisonment, and a fine, which shall not beryllium little than ₹10 lakh successful cases involving minors; women; mentally challenged persons; and members of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes oregon Other Backward Classes person been mentioned successful the Bill.
Conversion solely for the “purpose of marriage, oregon matrimony done for conversion, volition beryllium treated arsenic invalid unless owed ineligible procedures are followed” the projected instrumentality states.
Prior intimation
Individuals intending to person indispensable taxable a declaration to the competent authority, and spiritual functionaries conducting the conversion indispensable besides supply anterior intimation, the draught Bill states.
“For the purposes of this Act, ‘Competent Authority’ means the District Magistrate oregon immoderate serviceman specially authoried by the District Magistrate, who is not beneath the fertile of an Additional District Magistrate,” it added.
According to the projected law, accepting overseas oregon home funds for activities with the nonsubjective of violating the Act volition let the State to retreat fiscal oregon infrastructural assistance from violators.
Reconversion to one’s ancestral religion volition not beryllium treated arsenic conversion nether the law, according to the Bill.
Earlier, erstwhile the Bill was introduced successful the House, Congress MLAs raised objections, called for broader consultations, and sought the handing implicit of the Bill to a ‘Select Committee’. Leader of the Opposition Charan Das Mahant said akin laws from 11 States were presently nether information earlier the Supreme Court and, therefore, the Bill should not beryllium taken up successful the House hastily.
The contented was applicable to the State, and conversions had not been reported successful assorted districts of Bastar betwixt 2004 and 2021 contempt the earliest instrumentality being successful existence, Mr. Sharma said during the treatment connected the Bill. The Opposition wasn’t boycotting but escaping, the Deputy CM said.
