Religious conversion guidelines issued by Rajasthan high court: All you need to know

Jaipur: Rajasthan high court’s Jodhpur bench on Friday issued 10-point guidelines for religious conversions in the state. These guidelines will be effective till the government enacts its proposed bill to check forced conversions. Here is what Rajasthan high court guidelines say:

Minors won’t be able to convert to a new religion.

The person or organization performing the religious conversion has to ensure that the person seeking conversion has full faith in the new religion. It is also to be ensured that the person is not changing his or her religion out of fear or under pressure.

The person seeking conversion has to notify the district collector or sub divisional officer or sub-divisional magistrate before adopting the new religion. The officer who is informed need to display the request on a notice board on the same day.

The person won’t be able to marry someone from different religion for at least a week after the conversion. The organization or person solemnizing the wedding has to confirm whether the person who adopted new religion for marriage has informed the district collector and completed the formalities.

If a conversion is found to be performed forcefully, the district collector has to take necessary steps specified in the law.

The wedding that violates these guidelines won’t be considered valid if it is challenged.

The high court issued these guidelines after hearing a case in which a brother challenged his sister’s marriage and conversion to Islam. The girl, Payal who adopted Islam and is now called Arfia, had married a Muslim boy. Her brother filed a habeas corpus petition in the court claiming that she was a victim of ‘Love Jihad’ and had been brainwashed.

While the court ruled in the favor of the couple, allowing it to live together since both were adults, it however said that it would continue to hear the matter of forced religious conversion.