CSW requests that the issue of anti-conversion legislation is raised with the Indian government, urging for its intervention to secure the repeal of Freedom of Religion Acts in Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Arunachal Pradesh, Gujarat and Rajasthan.
In light of the introduction of a Freedom of Religion Act in Rajasthan state and the amendments to the laws in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, senior religious, legal and secularist spokesmen in India have expressed their concern about the Freedom of Religion Acts in six Indian states. Such legislation has now been enacted in Rajasthan (2006), Gujarat (2003), Madhya Pradesh (1968, amended 2006), Chhattisgarh, which inherited that of its parent state (amended 2006), Arunachal Pradesh (1978) and Orissa (1967). A Tamil Nadu law (2002) is currently inactive, having been repealed in 2004. A similar law may be brought in Jharkhand, and Hindu fundamentalist groups have in 2006 called for a nationwide law to restrict religious conversions.
The law recently passed by the Rajasthan state government and the amendments passed by the Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh state governments are still pending ratification by the respective state governors or the President.
The chief ostensible objective of these laws, grouped together under the collective heading of 'anticonversion legislation', is the prevention of conversions carried out by 'forcible' or 'fraudulent' means or by 'allurement' or 'inducement'. Article 3 the Orissa Freedom of Religion Act 1967, the first anti-conversion law to be introduced in post-Independence India, stipulates that 'No person shall convert or attempt to convert, either directly or otherwise, any person from one religious faith to another by the use of force or by inducement or by any fraudulent means nor shall any person abet such conversion'. Subsequent legislation has closely reflected this clause.
While minority religious commentators in India have been quick to denounce any unscrupulous, coercive or unethical attempts to convert, which are indeed prohibited in Article 18(2) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), they have also articulated deep concern about a number of flaws inherent to the legislation, and about its social impact.
The various laws are widely considered to be an affront to religious freedom, and in violation both of India's obligations under international law and her domestic constitutional protections with regard to the adoption, practice and propagation of religion. Of particular concern are the loose definitions in the laws, which are seen as creating wide potential for their misuse. The seemingly disproportionate magnitude of punitive provisions is another cause of grave concern.
In some states, harsher penalties are exacted with regard to conversion of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. This creates a deeper level of discrimination, which must also be considered; indeed, any issue pertaining to religious freedom in India must be viewed within the context of caste discrimination. Dalit and lower caste adherents to Christianity and Islam are the chief focus of religious persecution and discrimination. The embracement of 'non-Indic' religions by Dalits and tribals is perceived by Hindu fundamentalist groups as undermining the social structure of India, and as providing for their empowerment. From the perspective of many Dalit groups, religious freedom offers an escape from the subjugation associated with caste. With reference to India's Christian population, an estimated 75% is of Dalit or tribal background, and this demographic group is a chief victim of religiously motivated violence. India's Freedom of Religion legislation threatens the eligious freedom of Dalits and tribals not only through the higher penal provisions stipulated when offences are committed in respect of a Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe member, but also because the prohibition of conversion by 'allurement' or 'inducement' may impede charitable work among this group, including education and development programmes. Some critics have suggested that the newly-enacted Rajasthan law is more overtly aimed at containing Dalits and tribals within the caste system, by restricting conversions from the religion 'of one's forefathers'.
The most stringent stipulations and punitive provisions have occurred in the most recent anticonversion bills and amendments, particularly those in Gujarat and Rajasthan. In light of the moves made by the BJP in 2006 to enact or strengthen anti-conversion legislation in every state in which it holds sole power, this is an opportune time for a strong denunciation of anti-conversion legislation from the international community.
It should be noted that this report is designed particularly to reflect the concerns articulated by the Christian community in India, which has played an important role in opposing anti-conversion legislation. Among the particular arguments echoed herein are a legal challenge to the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Forcible Conversions Act 2002, which was repealed in 2004, and the analysis of a number of groups, including the All India Christian Council and the Public Interest Litigation Support and Research Centre. The concerns pertain not only to the Christian community in India but also to other religious minorities and the overall issue of religious freedom.
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