The Haryana government on Friday, 4 March, introduced the Prevention of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Bill during the Budget session of the Legislative Assembly, triggering an uproar from the opposition.
Arguing in support of the anti-conversion bill, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said that the Bill does not discriminate against any religion and is meant to prevent only "forcible conversions," The Indian Express reported.
Pointing towards MLAs in the Assembly, Khattar said, “All the people who are sitting on these benches can get their religion converted to whichever they want to."
'Bill is Unconstitutional': Opposition
The introduction of the Bill, however, did not go down well with opposition MLAs, who called it "unconstitutional".
Congress MLA Raghuvir Singh Kadiyan even tore a copy of the Bill, which got him suspended by the Speaker, Gian Chand Gupta.
After being asked to leave the Assembly, Kadiyan said, "I respect the Speaker's feelings, but I am not sorry for my act. I have only torn a simple piece of paper."
He also added that he had torn copies of the three farm laws in the Assembly.
In response, the Speaker said it was his duty to maintain decorum in the Assembly, adding that the Bill may be a "piece of trash" to Kadiyan, but not for the Assembly at large.
Ten states in India - Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Uttarakhand, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha - have passed laws to prevent forcible religious conversions.
(With inputs from The Indian Express.)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)