The Maharashtra Government has set up a seven-member committee headed by the State Director General of Police (DGP) to study the legal aspects for a new law against forced conversions and cases of 'love jihad". The committee includes secretaries of the women and child welfare, minority affairs, law and judiciary, social justice and special assistance departments, and deputy secretaries of the home department. As per a Government Resolution (GR) issued late on Friday, the committee will study the prevailing situation in the state and suggest steps to tackle the complaints of "love jihad" and forced conversions.
The committee will also look at legal aspects and the laws framed in other States. Accordingly, it will recommend legislation to prevent forced conversions and instances of "love jihad". Love jihad is a term used by right-wing activists and outfits to allege a conspiracy by Muslim men to convert Hindu women to Islam through marriage. Speaking on the development, Maharashtra minister and senior BJP leader Mangal Prabhat Lodha said the state government is taking strict steps to curb incidents of "love jihad" in the state. Lodha, the joint guardian minister of Mumbai suburban district, thanked Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis for the step.
"Love jihad is a serious issue, and the state government is working towards preventing such incidents. The committee established to address cases of love jihad will work for the protection of women and preservation of cultural values," he said. Lodha said he had set up the Interfaith Marriage Coordination Committee, which played a significant role in highlighting such incidents, when he was in charge of the Women and Child Development Department in the Eknath Shinde dispensation.
