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Criminalising ‘Conversions’!
Opinion | Articles | Cedric Prakash | 15-Jul-2024
On 1 July 2024, Justice Rohit Ranjan Agarwal of the Allahabad High Court in a bizarre comment said, “if this process (religious conversion) is allowed to be carried out, the majority population of this country would be in minority one day, and such religious congregation should be immediately stopped where the conversion is taking place and changing religion of citizen of India.” The single- bench judge was hearing the bail plea of one Kailash booked under Section 3/5(1) of the U.P. Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2021, said that Article 25 of the Constitution of India does not provide for religious conversion but only provides freedom of conscience and free profession, practice, and propagation of religion
He added, that it is against the Constitutional mandate of Article 25 of the Constitution which does not provide for religious conversion, it only provides freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion. The Court also noted that in several cases unlawful activity of conversion of people of SC/ST castes and other castes including economically poor persons into Christianity is being done at rampant pace throughout the State of Uttar Pradesh. The Court on expected lines, denied bail to the accused.
Exactly a week later, on 9 July, the same judge Agarwal sang the exact same tune, denying bail to yet another accused in a case of alleged ‘illegal conversion’. He observed that the right to freedom of conscience and religion cannot be constituted as the right to convert others! He once again categorically stated that, “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; the right to religious freedom belongs equally to the person converting and the individual sought to be converted."
The High Court referred to certain sections of the UP Government’s anti- conversion law of 2021. It noted that Section 3 of the 2021 Act clearly prohibits conversion from one religion to another based on misrepresentation, force, fraud, undue influence, coercion, and allurement. It further observed, that the Act provides for punishment for contravention of the provisions of the section, which also restricts a person from abetting, convincing, or conspiring to such conversion. Further, the Court stated, that the Act was enacted keeping in view Article 25 of the Constitution of India, which does not allow or permit any citizen to convert any citizen from one religion to another religion. Bail was also denied to the accused in this case!
Within a week, the same judge gave similar orders (patently unconstitutional) and denied bail to the accused. The charges against the alleged accused are unwarranted and unsubstantiated. The counsel of the accused, in the second case, had categorically submitted to the High Court that, ‘the FIR does not identify any "religion converter" as defined by Section 2(I)(i) of the 2021 Act. It was further submitted that the witnesses' statements alleging undue influence for conversion were unsubstantiated. Finally, it was contended that no person who had converted to Christianity came forward to lodge a complaint. On the other hand, the AGA submitted that a case under Section 3/5 of the Act of 2021 was made out against the applicant, a resident from Andhra Pradesh.’
The points in contention, are the following:
- Article 25 of the Constitution (Freedom of conscience and free profession, practice, and propagation of religion) guarantees the freedom of conscience, the freedom to profess, practice, and propagate one’s religion, to all citizens;
- whoever has claimed that Article 25 gives one ‘the right to convert’?
- however, if one (an adult) freely embraces (converts to) another religion of one’s choice or for that matter, ‘stops believing that God exists’, who is the State or the Court to intervene?
- where is it written that ‘collective’ propagation of one’s religion, is not permitted?
- Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (to which India is a signatory) states, “everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance”.
- denying a person bail, when it is not a serious crime, goes against the principle of natural justice
Interestingly, several BJP- ruled States in the country have enacted anti-conversion laws (Rajasthan may be the next State to do so). This is clearly a ploy, a bogey, to defocus from more serious issues which plague the country today! Without any statistics to defend his arguments, Justice Agarwal is very frightened that “the majority population will become a minority in India one day” Even if his funda ‘fears’ are true, he will first need to answer the question WHY? Why are the people of India embracing Christianity or for that matter, any other religion?
Instead of ‘criminalising conversions’, the learned judge should take a cue from Dr B. R. Ambedkar and his conversion to Buddhism! Ambedkar’s conversion to Buddhism was not born of fantasy nor was it a sudden overnight decision. He had spent over twenty years studying various religions and discerning which one would be most suited for him and the down-trodden masses for whom he spoke. Addressing a huge gathering of Mahars in Bombay in May 1936 he transparently shared his ideas on conversion and why he considered it to be the best and only route towards emancipation. He unequivocally and courageously stated, “I tell you all very specifically, religion is for man and not man for religion; to get human treatment, convert yourselves”
Significantly, on 1 April 2021, the Gujarat Legislative Assembly amended the Gujarat Freedom of Religion Act 2003 which deals with instances of forcible religious conversions for marriage. This newly enacted amendment was challenged before the Gujarat High Court through writ petitions, on the grounds that it violated certain fundamental rights. The Gujarat High Court passed an interim order prohibiting its application to inter-faith marriages. Observations of the Court in the aforementioned order provide useful insights in the aspects of freedom of marriage, free choice, and their significance under Article 21 of the Constitution of India (Right to Life). The Court also questioned the constitutional validity of such an “anti-conversion” law in light of established judicial precedents.
Addressing a public gathering on the 2003 Gujarat Law at the Nehru Centre in London on 11 June 2003, eminent Jurist and former Solicitor General of India, the late Mr. Soli Sorabjee said, “The Gujarat legislation goes one step further and provides that the person who is converted has also to seek permission from the District Magistrate about the fact of such conversion. Failure to comply with these statutory provisions invites severe punishment of imprisonment and fine. These provisions are objectionable. They intrude on a person’s right to privacy. One’s religious belief is essentially a private matter as is conversion from one’s religion to another. It is a result of deep-seated inner convictions. The State laws have the effect of deterring genuine conversions and impairing the substance of religious freedom guaranteed by the Constitution. These laws have further shaken the confidence of the minority communities and accentuated their sense of insecurity.”
Instead of pathetically exposing his communal mindset, there is plenty, which the Allahabad High Court judge, needs to learn on Constitutional matters: justice and propriety!
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(The Author is a Jesuit Priest, and a human rights, reconciliation and peace activist. He can be reached on cedricprakash@gmail.com. Views expressed in this article are personal)
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