New Delhi: The Madhya Pradesh government is planning to impose death penalty on those involved in religious conversions of girls. The announcement was made by chief minister Mohan Yadav on the occasion of International Women’s Day on Saturday (March 8).
Addressing a government event in Bhopal, Yadav said that a provision of death penalty for “those guilty of converting the religion of daughters” along the same lines as the punishment for atrocities against minors.
In a post on X, Yadav shared a clip from the event and said that his government was dedicated to the protection and dignity of daughters.
“In Madhya Pradesh, the Religious Freedom Act is in place to take strict action against those who forcibly or through inducement conduct marriages and religious conversions. Our government will not tolerate any incidents of religious conversion or misconduct,” he said in Hindi.
Later in the evening, the government issued an official statement, announcing the same.
“Chief Minister Dr. Yadav said that the government will take the strictest steps against those who misbehave with girls, women and daughters. The culprits will be given death penalty. No culprit will be spared under any circumstances,” the statement read, as reported by The Hindu.
Also read: In MP’s Tribal Belt, ‘Personal Grudge’ Between a Preacher and a Driver Led to False Conversion Case
The chief minister then posted a picture showing his all-women security for the event. “All of you in CM Security have done a fantastic job. I salute the dedication of all you sisters towards security and alertness,” he wrote.
The government also released an installment of Rs 1,250 each to the accounts of more than 12.7 million beneficiaries of ‘Ladli Behna Yojana’, a monthly financial assistance scheme for women.
The Religious Freedom Act was passed by the Madhya Pradesh assembly on March 8, 2021 as the BJP hardened its stance against forced religious conversions. The BJP often uses the term “love jihad” to refer to alleged conspiracies where a Muslim man lures a Hindu woman to marry them to convert them to Islam. Similar laws have been brought in by the BJP government in other states as well.
The Wire has earlier released a six-part series of reports on people who won their legal battles after being falsely charged under the anti-conversion laws brought in by BJP governments in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Jharkhand.
