By Pervez Bari
Bhopal: Human rights organization National Confederation of Human Rights Organizations (NCHRO), Madhya Pradesh unit has challenged the Madhya Pradesh Religious Freedom Act, 2020, infamously known as ‘Love Jihad Law’ in Jabalpur High Court.
The organization’s State Secretary Adv. Shilpi Rangari in a press statement stated that the petition filed in the name of State president Aradhana Bhargava has appealed to the High Court to declare the Religious Freedom Act 2020 as unconstitutional, stating the said law is against constitutional values. The petition stated that the clauses of the said law are against the provisions of Chapter III of the Indian Constitution.
The petition said that Article 25 of the Constitution gives every citizen the right to adopt any religion as per his wish, to follow it and to propagate it. But the Religious Freedom Act 2020 violates this right of citizens as provided by the Constitution. Therefore, this law is against the values and provisions of the Indian Constitution.
It should be noted here that since the Ordinance was passed by the Governor of Madhya Pradesh earlier in the above context, there has been a spurt in religious conversion cases wherein large number of persons belonging from minority community have been targetted.
Keeping this in view, the said writ petition has sought to reject the Religious Freedom Act 2020 and to declare it as ultra vires to the Constitution.