- The Devendra Fadnavis government introduced the Maharashtra Freedom of Religion Bill 2026 in the state assembly.
- The Bill prohibits religious conversions through coercion, fraud, inducement, or marriage, with strict punishments.
- It covers vulnerable groups, including minors, women, and Scheduled Castes and Tribes, and mandates police to register complai
The Maharashtra Freedom of Religion Bill 2026 has been introduced in the state assembly by the Devendra Fadnavis government on Friday, a law that strictly forbids religious conversions if they are done by force, deception, offering incentives, or through marriage, reported PTI.
As per the Bill, rules have been established regarding unlawful conversions carried out on the pretext of marriage. The punishment will be imprisonment of seven years and the offender shall also be liable for a fine of Rs 1 lakh.
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Under the regulations, a minor, a person of unsound mind, a woman, or a person belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes will also be protected. Violation against them will attract imprisonment of seven years and a fine of Rs 5 lakh.
According to the Bill, mass conversions and repeat individual offenders will be liable for a fine of Rs 5 lakh, while the jail term will be seven years for mass conversions and 10 years for repeat individual offenders.
The Bill lays down a set of rules for police officers, stating that it is mandatory for them to register complaints made by victims.
Under the proposed law, religious conversions carried out through marriage or promise of marriage are also prohibited if such acts involve inducement, coercion, or deceit.
The right of a person to freely choose their religion is mentioned in the Constitution. The Bill bans crimes related to religious conversions and makes it illegal to use allurement, force, misrepresentation, undue influence, or fraudulent means to convert someone.
The legislation prohibits any individual or institution from converting, or attempting to convert, a person from one religion to another by allurement or by force.
The Bill comes into force as incidents of forceful and organised religious conversions have been reported in various parts of the country, and vulnerable sections are often targeted through inducements, the government said, according to PTI.
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