The Uttar Pradesh Assembly on Tuesday passed the UP Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion (Amendment) Bill, 2024 that provides for a maximum punishment of life imprisonment, making the law stricter in cases of fraudulent or forced conversion.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Suresh Khanna introduced the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion (Amendment) Bill, 2024 in the House on Monday.  The move, however, has drawn severe criticism from the Opposition.

Earlier the maximum punishment provided for those found guilty of marrying a woman by deceiving and changing her religion was 10 years with a fine of Rs 50,000. 

According to the new provisions, if any minor, disabled or mentally challenged person, woman, or SC-ST individual is converted, the culprit will be punished with life imprisonment and a fine of Rs 1 lakh. Similarly, mass religious conversion will also be punishable with life imprisonment and a fine of Rs 1 lakh. Receiving funding from foreign or illegal institutions will be punishable with imprisonment of up to 14 years and a fine of Rs 10 lakh.

If someone, with the intention of causing religious conversion, threatens any person with harm to their life or property, attacks or uses force, promises marriage, lures, or trafficks a minor, woman, or person, they will be punished with up to 20 years of imprisonment. The punishment will not be less than one year and can be extended up to life imprisonment (until death). Apart from this, a fine will be imposed for the treatment and rehabilitation of the victim.

The Bill also proposes that anyone can register an FIR in conversion cases. Presently, Section 4 of the Act says only a person who has been converted, his/her parents, brother, sister, or any other person who is related to him/ her by blood, marriage, or adoption may lodge a first information report about the allegation of such conversion and no one else.

Further, the Bill aims to add a new offence of receiving funds from foreign or illegal organisations for unlawful conversion purposes. Offenders will face jail terms ranging between 5 years and 14 years.

It has been proposed that such cases will not be heard by any court below the Sessions Court and along with this, the bail plea will not be considered without giving an opportunity to the public prosecutor. Also, all the crimes under the amended Act have been made non-bailable.

The UP Government introduced this Bill in the Assembly on Monday, and it was passed on Tuesday. It will now be sent to the Legislative Council. After approval from the Houses, it will be sent to the Governor and then to the President.

The State Government had earlier passed the Prohibition of Religious Conversion Bill, 2021 in the Assembly. This Bill had a provision for punishment ranging from one to 10 years. Through the amendment, the previous bill has been further strengthened in terms of punishment and fines.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had taken this initiative with the intention of curbing ‘love jihad’, a term coined by some Hindu outfits for alleged forcible conversion. An ordinance was issued for curbing forced conversion in November 2020 and later, after the bill was passed by both the houses of the Uttar Pradesh Legislature, the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act-2021 came into force.

Commenting on the bill outside Parliament, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav said “What else do they have, they are not doing anything new. They are trying to divert the attention of the people through communal politics.”

The Supreme Court in May this year orally commented that the Uttar Pradesh ‘anti-conversion’ law in some parts may seem to be violative of the fundamental right to religion guaranteed under Article 25 of the Constitution.