Anil Vij, the Home Minister of Haryana, on Tuesday, 17 November, said that a stringent law will be enacted to control ‘love jihad’ cases, and a committee will be formed for the same, IANS reported.
The Haryana Home Minister held his first meeting in Chandigarh with higher officials and decided that another discussion on the issue will be held with Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar.
In a quote to ANI, Vij said, “We have decided to set up a drafting committee comprising members from the Home Department and Office of the Advocate General Haryana to make a strict law against 'love jihad'. We will also have a detailed discussion with the Chief Minister.”
CM Khattar had said earlier, after a 21-year-old student was shot point-blank by her stalker outside her college in Faridabad in October, that the Centre and the state government were taking the “love jihad” issue very seriously, according to a report by The Hindu. The victim’s family had alleged that the girl was being pressurised over conversion.
Home Minister Vij had then referred to this “as a serious matter” and said that “if we have to put a stop to it, we will.”
BJP-ruled states like Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh have made similar claims to combat ‘love jihad’ by law, and the Home Minister has said that he will be studying the laws made by other states.
Earlier on Tuesday, Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Narottam Mishra said that the state government is considering to bring legislation against ‘love jihad’. The Madhya Pradesh Home Minister further stated that marriages taking place out of fraud or by “tempting someone” for religious conversion will be considered null and void.
What Is Love Jihad?
In February this year, Minister of State for Home Affairs G Kishan Reddy had told the Parliament that the term ‘love jihad’ is not defined under any existing law and no case has been reported by any central agency.
However, earlier in November, Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa said that a law was necessary to put a stop to “conversions for the sake of marriage”.
Karnataka Minister for Tourism and Kannada and Culture CT Ravi on 4 November issued a statement that the state government, too, would bring in a law criminalising ‘love jihad’.
(With inputs from IANS, The Hindu and ANI)
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