The Uttar Pradesh government on Tuesday approved the draft of a stringent law to deal on religious conversion for the sake of marriage, keeping its promise to tackle the Sangh parivar-imagined concept of ‘love jihad’.

Punishment under the new law is a jail term between one and five years, and a fine of Rs 15,000. But if the woman involved is a minor or belongs to a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe, the jail term will range from three to 10 years, and the fine increase to Rs 25,000.

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