Love jihad: A conspiracy theory manifesting into laws in Uttar Pradesh
by Shrishti Mishra
Source: PTI Photo/Shailendra Bhojak (https://www.outlookindia.com/photos/topic/love-jihad/103657?photo-247959)
Anti-conversion laws in India have been in place since the 1960s in eight states with the state of Uttar Pradesh being the latest addition after the promulgation of the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Ordinance, 2020. It was passed on November 27, 2020 to curb what the Chief Minister of the State cites as “love jihad”, a purported conspiracy according to which men misrepresent their own religion in order to lure women from another religion into marrying them. The move has also triggered other Indian states led by the right-wing Hindu nationalist Bhartiya Janta Party (“BJP”) to contemplate enacting similar laws.