Mumbai, March 13 The Devendra Fadnavis government on Friday introduced the Maharashtra Freedom of Religion Bill 2026 in the state assembly, which has stringent provisions to prohibit religious conversions carried out through coercion, fraud, inducement, or marriage.
According to the Bill, those involved in unlawful conversions under the pretext of marriage will be punished with imprisonment of seven years and will also be liable for a fine of Rs 1 lakh.
Violations involving a minor, a person of unsound mind, a woman, or a person belonging to the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe will be punished with imprisonment of seven years and a fine of Rs 5 lakh.
Mass conversions will have a jail term of seven years and a fine of Rs 5 lakh. Repeat offenders can get a jail sentence of 10 years and a fine of Rs 5 lakh, according to the Bill.
The Bill makes it mandatory for the officer in charge of the police station to register a complaint made by any person.
The Bill seeks to protect the constitutional right to freedom of religion while banning conversions effected through allurement, force, misrepresentation, undue influence, or fraudulent means, according to the draft legislation.
Under the proposed law, no individual or institution will be allowed to convert or attempt to convert a person from one religion to another by offering gifts, money, employment, free education, a promise of marriage, a better lifestyle, or divine healing, which are classified as "allurement".
The bill also prohibits conversions carried out through marriage or a promise of marriage if such acts involve inducement, coercion, or deceit, according to the draft legislation.
In the Bill's statement of objects and reasons, the government said that incidents of forceful and organized religious conversions have been reported in various parts of the country, and vulnerable sections are often targeted through inducements.
While the Constitution guarantees freedom of religion, the right is subject to public order, morality, and health, and does not include the right to forcibly convert another person, as per the Bill.
If enacted, Maharashtra will join states like Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, and Uttarakhand that have enacted similar laws to regulate religious conversions.
"The objective is to protect the right to freedom of religion. It also aims to prohibit unlawful religious conversions carried out through coercion, fraud, inducement, or marriage," said Minister of State for Home Pankaj Bhoyar, who introduced the bill in the assembly.
The Bill defines coercion as the act of compelling a person or group to convert against their will, while mass conversion is the conversion of two or more persons simultaneously.
Unlawful conversion is one done through force, fraud, misrepresentation, coercion, undue influence, or inducement.
The Bill lays down that no person or institution can convert or attempt to convert another person through allurement, coercion, deceit, or misrepresentation, force, or threat, fraudulent means, and undue influence.
The Bill mandates that any person intending to convert from one religion to another, as well as any individual or institution organizing a conversion ceremony, must give a notice in a prescribed form at least 60 days in advance to the competent authority.
The competent authority, as per the Bill, is the district magistrate or an officer authorized by the state government.
Upon receiving such notice, the competent authority will publicly display details of the proposed conversion on the notice board of its office as well as at the office of the village panchayat or the local authority concerned and invite objections from the public within 30 days of its publication.
The Bill further requires that the converted person and the individual or institution organizing the ceremony submit a declaration to the competent authority within 21 days after the conversion.
It also allows the converted person's parents, siblings, or relatives related by blood, marriage, or adoption to lodge a first information report (FIR) if they suspect unlawful conversion and mandates the police to register such complaints.
Under the proposed law, the burden of proof that a conversion was not carried out in violation of the provisions of the Act will lie on the person who caused, assisted, or abetted the conversion.
The Bill states that offences under the proposed law will be cognisable and non-bailable, with investigation being conducted by a police officer not below the rank of sub-inspector.
The government also proposed provisions for rehabilitation support to victims of unlawful conversion and arrangements for maintenance and custody of children affected by such cases.