The Gujarat High Court has issued a notice to the state government while hearing a petition challenging the vires of the Gujarat Freedom of Religion (Amendment) Act, 2021, popularly known as the ‘Love Jihad’ law, on the basis that the law is manifestly arbitrary and violates the right to privacy, among other constitutional rights.
A division bench of Chief Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Biren Vaishnav issued the notice on Thursday. The bench also asked the state counsel to interpret what was meant by conversion “by marriage” introduced in the amended act.
The law was brought into effect from June 15 this year after the amendment bill was passed by the state government.
This amendment has been challenged by two petitions- one by the Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind and Jamiat Ulama Welfare Trust and the other by an Ahmedabad resident – Mujahid Nafees.
Appearing for the Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind, senior advocate Mihir Joshi argued stated that, while Article 25 of the Constitution guarantees freedom to propagate religion and that the unamended act made forcible or fraudulent conversions an offence, “the amendment goes far more than that… It has vague terms incorporated which affect your right to propagate (religion) and also the right to privacy essential to an individual, being that of marriage.”
The petitioners have challenged the broader definition of “allurement” which includes “better lifestyle, divine blessings or otherwise”, which has been termed as “vague” by the petitioners as the term ‘otherwise’ “could mean anything at all”, as submitted by Joshi.
Chief Justice Nath, agreeing to the petitioners observation, remarked that sections 2(a) (i) and 2 (a) (ii), which defines allurement as offer of any temptation in the form of ‘any gift or gratification, either in cash or kind and grant of any material benefit, either monetary or otherwise’, already takes care of the aspect of “better lifestyle in itself”, which has now been introduced as an additional specific clause in the amended act.
The bench has sought from the government pleader as to what is implied by the phrase of ‘by marriage’ as a condition under prohibition by forcible conversion.
“Whatever be the interpretation of your provision, we can say that two adults of two religions or an inter-religion alliance or marriage would not by itself constitute an offence, until and unless any of the ingredients of allurement, force, etc. are there… It is up to the married couple to decide which religion to follow,” the bench remarked.
The Chief Justice further added, “If the state takes any action/sends to jail any person in case of inter-religion marriage, you come to us we will protect you.”
Issuing notice to the State Government, the High Court has posted the matter for hearing on August 17.
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Rushda Fathima Khan is the Staff Reporter for The Cognate.
