Madhya Pradesh Cabinet here on Tuesday sanctioned an ordinance meant for curbing love jehad, during a cabinet meeting in Bhopal.
The Freedom of Religion bill 2020 which has provisions to check love jehad cases was approved by the Cabinet in a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. The Bill has provision for up to ten-year jail term for those accused of alluring girls of other faith into marriages fraudulently.
The bill targets those who connive to convert girls into other faiths into the pretext of marriage. Besides upto jail term of ten years, the offenders and their aides could be subjected upro fine of Rs one lakh.
Chief Minister himself briefed the cabinet on the provisions in the meeting. During a last week cabinet meet, the Chief Minister had rejected the draft prepared by the Home ministry, instructing some changes into it. The ordinance will now be sent to Governor Anandiben Patel for approval, and afterwards the same will be tabled in assembly for approval within next six months. While doing this, MP has become second state for adopting a legislation for preventing love jihad cases.
The love jihad bill has 19 provisions. The Shivraj government was to table the same in assembly for approval but decided to bring in an ordinance instead after the winter session was adjourned over Covid19 threat on Sunday.
Those found guilty of converting women with the help of threat, marriage, allurement or any other unfair mean by upto five-year jail term and upto Rs 25,000 fine. The jail term will rise to upto ten years and fine upto Rs 50,000, if the victim belongs to SC/ST categories. Those guilty of facilitating mass conversions also will subjected to jail term upto ten years and fine upto Rs one lakh, says the bill.
Such marriages will be nullified but the kids born out of such marriage will be entitled for share in father’s property and mother could also seek subsistence allowance. Shivraj government had drawn flak for the bill but showed plenty of defiance by persisting with the decision to implement the same.
Meanwhile, Home minister Narottam Mishra told the media that the police are probing into the complaint of a woman who had accused her husband of marrying her while hiding his identity, and if the case turns out to be an instance of love jihad, first FIR under the new law will be lodged in the matter. Such cases are coming to fore constantly and he was given a fresh complaint by a woman from Ashok Vihar in Bhopal on Tuesday.