The Constitution of India contains in its chapter on Fundamental Rights provides several provisions that emphasise complete legal equality of its citizens irrespective of their religion and creed and prohibit any kind of religion-based discrimination between them. The State shall not deny any person equality before the law or the equal protection of the laws within the territory of India as provided in Article 14. The State shall not discriminate against any citizen on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them, either in general or in matter of access to or use of general and public places and conveniences as provided in Article 15. The Constitution of India safeguards the freedom of conscience and the right to profess, practise and propagate the religion of one’s choice under article 25. Every religious denomination or any section thereof has the right to manage its religious affairs; establish and maintain institutions for religious and charitable purposes; and own, acquire and administer properties of all kinds as provided in Article 26. Article 30 provides that Religious and Linguistic minorities are free to establish and administer educational and institutions of their choice, which shall not be discriminated against by the State in the matter of giving aid or compensation in the event of acquisition. One of the fundamental duties is to promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the people of India transcending religious, linguistic and regional or sectional diversities as provided in Article 51A (e). All citizens shall have the right to the freedom of speech and expression and also to assemble peaceably and without arms as provided in article 19. Article 21 provides the right to life and personal liberty. India is also a signatory to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenants on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights where the freedom of religion or belief is recognised as a basic inalienable human right.
Freedom of Religion Acts or anti-conversion laws - Persecution of Christians in India.
Yet, despite of the above mentioned constitutional guarantees and international commitments, there are several incidences it violates the fundamental rights of the citizens on the ground of religion including the Christianity. Para 3 of the 1950 Presidential Order is violative of fundamental rights safeguard in the Constitution of India. Several states of India have enacted laws titled “Freedom of Religious Acts” or anti-conversion laws. After Indian Independence, as the Indian Constitution was prepared, the Constitutional Assembly Advisory Committee on Fundamental Rights proposed a clause against conversion by “coercion or undue influence” but was ultimately rejected. In 2015, the Ministry of Law & Justice announced that the federal government could not establish anti-conversion laws and was a purview of individual states. In 2002, the Tami Nadu state assembly ruled by a regional party passed the Prohibition of Forcible Conversion of Religion Bill to please the Bharatiya Janata Party(BJP), its ally. But after the defeat of the BJP-led coalition in the 2004 general elections, the state government repealed the law. As of 2022, more than nine states have authorised their own states and these states follows the similar principles of anti-religious commonly described as conversion due to force or inducement or fundamental means.
Anti-conversion laws are seen as violation of secularism and religious freedom under the Fundamental Rights. Most of the anti-conversion laws in India were implemented after the Narendra Modi-led the Bharatiya Janata Party(BJP) took up the Indian government since 2014, except in Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh and Odisha. Although prior the BJP government, Gujarat enacted its laws in 2003 when BJP ruled the state legislature under Narendra Modi. The BJP has been accused by other parties and non-Hindu religion as reviving the prohibitionary laws, as one of the propagandas under the right-wing activism, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh(RSS), regulation on religious conversion became a major objectives of BJP. Such movement are viewed as contravention not only of religious freedom, but also of other constitutional rights and claim as unjustified and unconstitutional. Even in the absence of anti-conversion laws there are several criminal cases, for example in Maharashtra there is no such law yet Christians are been arrested for allegedly converting Hindus. When the Karnataka bill for anti-conversion law was prepared, the BJP did not have majority initially in 2021 but in early 2022, the BJP gained support and was able to pass the bill in September.
The opposition party, the Indian National Congress, the Janata Dal(Secular) and Christian community opposed to and protested against the bill arguing it as unconstitutional and “completely illegal”. As of 2021, in U.P, 108 police reports involving 350 people with 189 arrests and 72 convictions were recorded for violation of anti-conversion law. A day after Karnataka laws was enacted on 17 May, 2022, Pastor Kuryichan and his wife Salenamma were arrested by the police following a complaint from the Hindu activists for performing mass conversion of tribal workers in Kadagu. In Madhya Pradesh, three Christian missionaries were arrested in December 2021 at Bicholi village. They were accused of attempting conversion of Hindu tribal by offering free education and medical services. In Gujarat, the Missionaries of Charity, established by Mother Teresa, had received accusations of converting Hindus. Several police cases have been closed as no evidence could be brought to the court. The worker nuns have been arrested in December 2021, there was a police case of allegedly inducing Christianity to Hindu children and child trafficking in the organisation. The Central government stopped all the international funding system of the organisation.
Today, India’s Christians are praying not to introduce a national anti-conversion law in India as it would lead to more attacks against Christian and other minorities. Increasing numbers of states in India especially the BJP ruled have passed anti-conversion laws and now, these laws states that nobody can be forced or coerced into conversion to another faith. That sounds good in theory but in reality, it is often abused to target Christians and other religious minorities, and stop believers worshipping, gathering together or telling others about Jesus. Notably, anti-conversion laws are not used to stop forced conversion (or ‘reconversion’) to Hinduism. In these states, Hindutva is often prevalent – the ideology that all Indians should be Hindu. Christian in these states lives under greater levels of persecution than their brothers and sisters elsewhere in India. But now there is a risk of anti-conversion laws being passed at national-level, which would make life harder for believers in the country.
Anti-conversion laws are known to intentionally attack on Christians, “Freedom of Religion Acts are instrumental in brutally suppressing and exploiting Christian minorities and punishing pastors and church workers. Anti-conversion laws also embolden Hindu are nationalist groups to harass and attack Christian”. In India where anti-conversion laws have been passed recently, those has been a rapid increase of incidents of persecution against Christians, such as churches being destroyed, Bibles and other literature being confiscated and Christian gathering being banned. Mobs have verbally and physically attacked Christians. Believers face public humiliation, beating, and head shaving, often these incidents are recorded and shared on social media – the attackers proud of the persecution.
(the writer Shri. Kezhokhoto Savi popularly known as Consumer Activist was born and brought up in a Christian family and accepted Jesus Christ as his personal saviour and took water baptism at his teen age. He did his early education till graduation from Christian school and college. As a law practitioner he has serious concern for defending freedom and also associated to ADF(Alliance Defending Freedom) International and his role as a social activist to create awareness amongst the Christian community about their rights guaranteed to each citizen by the Constitution of India and the risk of Freedom of Religion Acts or anti-conversion laws to be introduce in Nagaland which would violates the fundamental rights of the citizens on the ground of religion including the Christianity. He has an experienced of 26 years teaching law as Asst. Professor and a guest faculty (law) to several training centre including Administrative Training Institute (ATI), Govt. of Nagaland, Kohima. He was a youth leader in churches and actively involves in Evangelical Union (EU) throughout his college days. Till date he is a Member of Justice & Peace Committee, Council of Baptist Churches in North East India(CBCNEI), Guwahati, Assam and legal advisor NBCC).
Kezhokhoto Savi,
Advocate