New Delhi: The Yogi Adityanath government has introduced the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion (Amendment) Bill, 2024, in the Assembly, proposing stricter punishments, including life imprisonment, for ‘love jihad’ cases.
The BJP has praised the amendments as a positive step, while the Samajwadi Party has criticised them as divisive and aimed at creating societal animosity.
UP Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya stated that the legislation should be welcomed as a deterrent against such practices. BJP leader Mohsin Raza emphasised that the amended law would help address illegal religious conversions, particularly in cases where individuals conceal their identities to marry and then force conversions.
“If someone deceives your daughter by hiding their identity and has malicious intent, they should be held accountable,” said Raza.
The Samajwadi Party condemned the amendments, accusing the Yogi Adityanath government of negative politics motivated by a bias against a particular community. SP leader Fakhrul Hasan Chand argued that the existing law already addresses ‘love jihad’ and that the BJP’s focus should be on issues like unemployment and exam paper leaks.
Mohsin Raza also criticised opposition parties for viewing the proposed law as a conspiracy. He asserted that a strict regulation is necessary to end such practices and dismissed claims of communal and discriminatory motives as appeasement politics.
Currently, the punishment for cases involving concealed identity in marriage ranges from one to ten years, with religious conversions for marriage being deemed invalid. Under the revised law, offenders could face life imprisonment.
The amendment is expected to pass in the Assembly by voice vote on August 2.
