Maharashtra 'love jihad' law: Interfaith unions fine but marriage through lie, fake identity spreading, says Chief Minister

Two days after the Maharashtra government formed a seven-member committee under the leadership of the state's Director General of Police to take action against "love jihad", Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday said there was nothing wrong with interfaith marriages, but steps are needed to be taken against matrimonial alliances through fraud and false identity.

The trend of abandoning women after marriage and childbirth is spreading in society which needs to be stopped. In these cases, lying cheating by creating false identities and fraud are involved and the government can't stand and watch, CM Fadavis said.

Chief Minister Fadnavis had recently promised to soon enact a law to prevent forced conversions, especially "love jihad." "It is a reality, and in Maharashtra, incidents of being duped into marriage and then abandoned once children are born are on the rise. It is not right to deliberately lie. Therefore, whatever action is required in this regard will be taken by the state government," the BJP leader told reporters in Nagpur.

Fadnavis claimed that the Supreme Court and Kerala High Court have made observations about the reality of "love jihad" -- a term used by right-wing outfits to allege a conspiracy by Muslim men to convert Hindu women to Islam through marriage.

The state government has issued a Government Resolution (GR) stating that a committee headed by the state director general of police (DGP) will suggest steps to tackle the complaints of "love jihad" and forced conversions. It will also look at legal aspects and the laws framed in other states and recommend legislation to prevent such instances.  It was also announced that the state government have issued instructions regarding who will be the members of the committee and how exactly will it function.