ASIA/INDIA - "Anti-conversion law" proposed in the state of Haryana

New Delhi (Agenzia Fides) - In the Indian state of Haryana, a bill has been presented to regulate religious conversion. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in the state, located in northern India, has announced that it will move forward with the proposed "anti-conversion" legislation. The state of Haryana thus becomes the eleventh Indian state to consider a specific legislative provision that prohibits or regulates religious conversions with state interventions (such as that of a magistrate).
According to the BJP government, in Haryana, the proposed bill aims "to prevent religious conversions carried out by force, undue influence or enticement" but, as the opposition argues, it becomes an unconstitutional limit to freedom of consciousness. There are many voices that criticize the bill for the "prevention of illegal conversion", presented to the Legislative Assembly on March 4. If passed, the law, they say, would increase religious polarization in society and promote a "politics of division" towards religious minorities such as Muslims and Christians. Church leaders, Catholic lay leaders and civil society groups opposed the new bill. According to K.P. Sasi, a human rights promoter and director, "if people do not react, it means that the time of a Hindu nation is approaching". John Dayal, a Catholic journalist, reminds Fides that "Haryana follows in the footsteps of Karnataka, where the State Assembly approved an anti-conversion bill despite strong opposition from civil society and political parties, contrary to a law that limits the rights of an Indian citizen to choose their religion, violating equality and freedom of religion".
Catholic A.C. Michael, a former member of the Delhi Minority Commission, today national coordinator of the United Christian Forum and the All India Catholic Union, told Fides: "I am against any law that does not respect freedom, in particular a law that requires citizens to seek government permission to practice one's own religion. I join my fellow citizens in calling for the repeal of the anti-conversion laws".
The National Solidarity Forum (NSF), a coalition of groups that support the principles of a secular state, human rights, peace, justice and harmony, has launched a campaign to repeal anti-conversion laws in India. In addition to the measures under discussion in Harayana and Karnataka, nine other states (Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Jharkhand) have already enacted anti-conversion laws, which have often been challenged in court. (SD-PA) (Agenzia Fides, 9/3/2021)

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