Karnataka:Controversial Bills gone to cold storage

The decision to repeal the anti-conversion law comes as a response to mounting public pressure and concerns raised by various groups regarding its potential misuse and violation of individual rights.The Karnataka law said that anyone involved in illegal conversion would face a jail term of three to 10 years and a fine of ₹50,000. The law, tougher than those passed by a few other BJP states, also targetted inter-faith marriages with one of its sections promising action against anyone who “converts or attempts to convert, either directly or otherwise, any other person from one religion to another by use or practice of misrepresentation, force, undue influence, coercion, allurement or by any fraudulent means or by any of these means or by the promise of marriage.”The law requires district magistrates to call for objections, if any, to the proposed religious conversion within 30 days, and an inquiry if any is received. If the inquiry makes a case under the law, the district magistrate should ask the police to initiate criminal action, the law said.

Religious demand made government to go slow

Although the government vowed to repeal it, now it appears to go slow on the decision following opposition from various mutts of major communities.These include Brahmins and Lingayats Swamiji's. The Congress sources said that it has been decided to show due diligence before tabling it in the Assembly. It is true that Law Department is looking into this issue. Depending on the legal opinion the government may take an appropriate decision at an appropriate time. No one in the party is serious about this repeal as the next general elections are fast approaching. In the Legeslative Council government made a statement that there is no such proposals before the government to repeal anti cow slaughter bill. This is an indication for referring it. Congress seems not to take risk at this juncture. They feel that scrapping these law may give BJP an edge over it. Major Lingayat mutts have urged the government to drop these proposals. Brahmin mutts of South Canara have demanded to retain these laws. Government is listening to these Swamiji's in a bid to retain the vote share which came unexpectedly during the Assembly elections

Toeing BJP's line for votes

 The cabinet has earlier decided to revoke the decision as it violates the constitutional right to practice a religion of choice. In many cases, there are restrictions placed on interreligious marriages. It  described  it as an “ invasion of people’s rights and privacy.” Since the Congress government has taken charge in Karnataka, chief minister Siddaramaiah has earlier announced slew of policy changes to undo the decisions made by the previous Bharatiya Janata Party government as promised in the party’s election manifesto. The Congress had claimed that the BJP government had taken decisions with communal intent, the charge refuted by the BJP. As of now it looks that government has backtracked on its proposal and we have to wait to know what is in the store.

( Dr Mysi Patil is the State Correspondent)