The Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh has decided to enforce stricter punishments for ‘Love Jihad’ offences, with the penalty now extending to life imprisonment. On Monday, the government introduced a bill in the assembly proposing increased penalties for various crimes, including new offences under the ‘Love Jihad’ framework.
The bill also aims to criminalize funding for illegal religious conversions. This move follows the initial ‘Love Jihad’ law enacted by the Yogi government in 2020. An ordinance to further strengthen this law was presented in the assembly and is expected to pass on July 30.
Previously, the maximum punishment for such crimes was ten years of imprisonment. The UP government had earlier passed the Religious Conversion Prohibition Bill 2021, which provided for imprisonment ranging from 1 to 10 years. Under this bill, conversions carried out solely for the purpose of marriage are considered illegal. False or deceptive conversions are deemed criminal offences, and voluntary conversions require a two-month prior notification to a magistrate.
The bill stipulates a prison term of 1 to 5 years and a fine of ₹15,000 for forced or fraudulent conversions. In cases involving Dalit girls, the punishment includes imprisonment for 3 to 10 years and a fine of ₹25,000.
