2 months ago
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The Maharashtra Assembly connected Monday (March 16, 2026) nighttime passed the Freedom of Religion Bill 2026, which has stringent provisions to prohibit spiritual conversions carried retired done coercion, fraud, inducement oregon marriage, by dependable vote.
As per the Bill, those progressive successful unlawful conversions connected the pretext of matrimony volition beryllium punished with imprisonment of 7 years and shall besides beryllium liable for a good of ₹1 lakh.
Violations successful respect of a minor, a idiosyncratic of unsound mind, a pistillate oregon a idiosyncratic belonging to the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe volition beryllium punished with imprisonment of 7 years and a good of ₹5 lakh.
Mass conversions volition person a jailhouse word of 7 years and a good of ₹5 lakh. Repeat offenders tin get a jailhouse condemnation of 10 years and a good of ₹5 lakh, arsenic per the Bill.
"The projected anti-conversion instrumentality successful Maharashtra is not directed against immoderate peculiar religion, and it aims lone to forestall spiritual conversions carried retired done force, fraud oregon inducement, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis told the assembly.
He noted that respective States, including Odisha, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Karnataka and Jharkhand, person already enacted akin laws.
"This measure does not restrict a person's close to travel a religion arsenic guaranteed nether Article 25 of the Constitution. The close to religion does not see the close to person different idiosyncratic done coercion, misrepresentation, fraud oregon allurement," Mr. Fadnavis said and cited rulings of the Supreme Court.
Earlier successful the day, Mr. Fadnavis told reporters that respective women had been lured into relationships, married, and aboriginal abandoned, asserting that the measure against fraudulent spiritual conversion aims to code these issues and curb specified practices.
"The Opposition parties are politicising the contented for vote-bank gains, but erstwhile they work the measure carefully, they volition person nary objections," helium added.
Speaking successful the Assembly, Mr. Fadnavis, who holds the Home portfolio, besides stated that complaints tin beryllium filed by the affected idiosyncratic oregon adjacent relatives, portion the constabulary whitethorn besides instrumentality enactment successful definite cases.
Seeking enactment for the transition of the bill, the Chief Minister said the measure is intended to support citizens from unlawful conversions and assistance support instrumentality and order.
Notably, the absorption Shiv Sena (UBT) has extended its enactment to the bill.
Sena (UBT) MLA Bhaskar Jadhav said the measure aims to support the close to spiritual state and forestall amerciable spiritual conversions.
"It is broad and does not people immoderate circumstantial religion, contempt rumours oregon misconceptions. The nonsubjective is to curb unethical practices and misuse of religion that harm individuals oregon communities," Mr. Jadhav said, adding that reports of the measure targeting a peculiar religion are incorrect.
The measure applies to each religions equally, and its intent is to forestall coercion oregon inducement successful spiritual conversion, helium added, citing Dr B.R. Ambedkar's conversion successful 1956 arsenic voluntary and without coercion.
He emphasised that each religion has definite harmful practices that restrict quality rights, and the measure is meant to modulate specified practices legally.
A bulk of Opposition MLAs demanded that the measure beryllium referred to a associated prime committee of the legislature for discussions.
Minister of State for Home Pankaj Bhoyar said the projected instrumentality aims to forestall conversions carried retired done fraud, coercion oregon inducement portion safeguarding Constitutional rights.
Replying to the statement successful the House, Mr. Bhoyar said the measure seeks to guarantee that spiritual conversions instrumentality spot voluntarily and successful a transparent manner.
Some members had objected to the proviso requiring a idiosyncratic intending to person to different religion to springiness a 60-day anterior announcement to the territory magistrate, calling it unjust and against law guarantees, helium said.
"The nonsubjective of this proviso is lone to verify that the conversion is taking spot retired of escaped volition and not done fraud, unit oregon inducement," Mr. Bhoyar said, adding that the process was meant to supply transparency and extortion alternatively than restrict idiosyncratic liberty.
The Minister besides addressed concerns implicit the request to pass authorities wrong 21 days aft the conversion, failing which the conversion could beryllium treated arsenic invalid.
He said the request was meant for administrative record-keeping and to forestall imaginable ineligible and societal disputes successful the future.
Responding to disapproval that relatives oregon different persons could record complaints regarding the forced conversions, Mr. Bhoyar said successful galore cases, victims whitethorn not beryllium successful a presumption to attack the constabulary themselves.
"The proviso allowing others to lodge complaints is intended to guarantee extortion wherever fraud, unit oregon threats are suspected," helium said.
Mr. Bhoyar stated that the instrumentality does not contradict adults the close to alteration their religion, noting that the Constitution guarantees the state to profess, signifier and propagate religion.
The Minister added that peculiar attraction would beryllium taken during implementation to guarantee the extortion of women's rights, adding that the instrumentality seeks to safeguard women, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and minors from forced oregon fraudulent conversions.
Mr. Bhoyar further said that if a matrimony takes spot connected the ground of an amerciable conversion and a kid is born, the kid would beryllium considered to travel the mother's archetypal religion anterior to conversion, arsenic per provisions successful the bill.
BJP's Atul Bhatkalkar warned against attempts to change Maharashtra's demography done spiritual conversion, saying specified efforts would not succeed.
After the discussion, presiding serviceman Sanjay Kelkar declared the measure passed.
Nitin Raut and different MLAs from the Opposition had raised concerns implicit imaginable "vigilantism".
Congress MLA Aslam Shaikh said the nonsubjective and essence of the measure look to interaction the Constitution and close to privacy.
Samajwadi Party MLAs Abu Asim Azmi and Rais Shaikh besides opposed the bill.
Shaikh said the measure violates Articles 14, 15, and 21 of the Constitution.
"Maharashtra is simply a progressive authorities which has ever acceptable an illustration for the remainder of the country. This measure curtails the Constitutional close to state of religion," helium said.
