Haryana: Cabinet nod for draft anti-conversion Bill, puts burden of proof on accused

As per the the draft Bill’s statements of objectives and reasons the right to freedom of religion is guaranteed under Articles 255, 26, 27 and 28 of the Constitution. It adds that the objective of this right is to sustain the principle of secularism. According to the Constitution, “state has no religion, all religions are equal, and no religion shall be given preference over the other”,” it reads, adding that the citizens are free to preach, practice and propagate any religion of their choice.

“The Constitution confers on each individual the fundamental right to profess, practice and propagate his religion. However, the individual right to freedom of conscience and religion cannot be extended to construe a collective right to proselytize; for the right to religious freedom belongs equally to the person converting and the individual sought to be converted. Still, there have been umpteen cases of religious conversions, both mass and individual. Obviously, such incidents have been hotly debated, more so in a multi-religious society, such as ours. The presence of pseudo-social organizations with a hidden agenda to convert the vulnerable sections of other religions. There have been in stances when gullible people have been converted by offering allurement or under undue influence. Some have been forced to convert to other religions,” it read.

It points out that “in the recent past, several instances have come to the notice that with an agenda to increase the strength of their own religion by getting people from other religions converted, people marry persons of other religion by either misrepresentation or concealment of their own religion and after getting married they force such other person to convert to their own religion”.

It said that the Supreme Court has also taken judicial notice of such instances. “Such incidents not only infringe the freedom of religion of the persons so converted but also militate against the secular fabric of our society that conversion just for the purpose of marriage is unacceptable such incidents not only infringe the freedom of religion of the persons so converted but also militate against the secular fabric of our society,” it said.

“The Bill, therefore, seeks to prevent religious conversions which are affected through use of force, under threat, misrepresentation, undue influence, coercion, allurement or by any fraudulent means or by marriage or for marriage by making it an offence. Provide greater punishment for such conversion in respect of the Minor, Women, Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes,” it adds.

The draft also mentions that “the burden of proof as to whether a conversion was not affected through misrepresentation, use of force, under threat, undue influence, coercion, allurement or by any fraudulent means or by marriage or for marriage for the purpose of carrying out conversion lies on the accused.”

Every individual converting from one religion to another will have to submit a declaration that it was not being done through misrepresentation, use of force, under threat, or undue influence.