Two days after the Maharashtra government issued a Government Resolution (GR) on the formation of a committee headed by the state director general of police (DGP) to suggest steps to tackle the complaints of “love jihad” and forced conversions, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis Sunday said there was nothing wrong with interfaith marriages, but steps are needed against matrimonial alliances formed fraudulently or through false identity.
Speaking in Nagpur, Fadnavis said that the Supreme Court and the Kerala High Court have made observations about the reality of “love jihad”.
“It is a reality, and in Maharashtra, incidents of being duped into marriage and then abandoned once children are born are on the rise,” he said.
Adding that there was nothing wrong with interfaith marriages, the CM said instances of using fake identities and fraud are serious and need to be curbed.
The state government has formed a committee that will study the legal aspects for a new law against forced conversions and cases of “love jihad” and the laws framed in other states and recommend legislation to prevent such instances.
“Love jihad” is a term used by right-wing activists and outfits to allege conspiracy by Muslim men to convert Hindu women into Islam through marriage.