The Maharashtra government has stated that it will research bills and Acts of other states connected to “Love Jihad” in order to introduce similar legislation
Maharashtra: Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said, laws and bills on “Love Jihad” will be studied and researched. The implementation of love Jihad law in other states will be taken into consideration.
Fadnavis’s statements followed the recent happening in Madhya Pradesh. It was alleged that a right-wing activist group had beaten up a Muslim youth over love jihad.
The youth had reportedly been found at Treasure Island Mall in the city of Indore Madhya Pradesh.
When asked about the youth’s identity sources said that his name was Monu Verma. Afterwhich, the youth was directed to produce a valid identity card his name appeared to be Moin Khan. The youth was then beaten up by the group of activists before he was handed over to Tukoganj police.
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Kamlesh Sharma, Tukoganj police station in-charge, said, “A girl approached the police station along with some Bajrang Dal activists. She had gone to watch a movie at TI mall in the city with a youth belonging to another community. Initially, the youth told the activists that his name was Monu but later when they interrogated him, he gave his real name as Moin, a resident of Manikbagh in the city.”
This incident was followed by the remarks of Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on 20th December. “Such cases are happening all across the country. Some states have made stringent laws to curb such cases; hence, Maharashtra is also ready to enact the law on similar lines to ensure long-term protection to women,” he said. The government will take a final call soon after a complete research on bills and laws put forth by other states with regard to love jihad, he added.
Love Jihad cases have been rolling in the terrain in different states as well. In the first month after Uttar Pradesh’s “love jihad” law went into effect in March 2021, police reported 16 cases involving up to 86 individuals, 79 of whom were Muslims. By November, there were 108 cases, naming 257 individuals reports Aljazeera.
Next on the list is Madhya Pradesh. MP Minister Narrotam Mishra Claimed that the existing law for love jihad was effective in bringing down the number of such cases. Additionally he said, that last year, when the Act was implemented, 65 cases of ‘love-jihad’ were registered and in 2022, 49 cases had been registered till date reported The Hindu.
Right-wing group Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) released a list of 400 alleged ‘love jihad cases’. The VHP’s list compiled cases from 2009 to 2022 which were published in the media, including that of Walkar. VHP Joint Secretary Surendra Jain “There is a strong need for a strict central law to prevent love jihad and illegal conversions, which create social discontent and threats to national security.”
“In the case of Kerala’s Hadiya, it became clear that terrorist organizations like the PFI paid eminent lawyers crores of rupees to defend Jihadis. For this, they get a huge amount of money from abroad. Because of the terrorist nexus of illegal conversion and love jihad and its international nature, this phenomenon cannot be stopped by enacting laws only in a few states. A nationwide resolution is necessary, which can be expressed only through a strong national law,” he added, reported The Print.
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