Mumbai: Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday emphasised the need for a Love Jihad law, citing reports of nearly 1 lakh such cases. He noted that while these cases initially seemed like interfaith marriages, a troubling pattern had emerged with men hiding their identities before marriage and later abandoning their wives after having children. Many of these women were then rejected by their families and left on the streets to fend for themselves.
Given this alarming trend, Fadnavis emphasized the necessity of a love jihad law. He made these remarks while discussing women’s issues on the occasion of International Women’s Day. He also discussed women’s safety. Speaking about missing girls, the Chief Minister said he has instructed the police not to close cases if they are not solved quickly.
“I have told them to keep the files open for two to three years,” Fadnavis said. The Chief Minister said interfaith marriages are not bad but added only those that take place after faking or hiding identity, involve forced conversions, and dumping wife after childbirth need to be stopped.
“We have set up a committee comprising officials from the government, and police to work on how to deal with such cases and draft a legislation,” Fadnavis said.
What Is Love Jihad?
“Love jihad” is a term that has gained political currency and is used to allege a conspiracy by Muslim men to convert Hindu women to Islam through fraudulent marriages.
On the occasion of International Women’s Day, the Chief Minister said he was happy to be the parent of a girl, adding “daughters are God’s blessings” and that he was fortunate to have received it. “Gender equality is a value that needs to be taught from childhood that girls and boys are individuals who need to be treated equally. Gender equality is only on paper and needs to be imbibed within families, while governments can make interventions,” Fadnavis said.
He said he had never felt pressure from society or family over him having a daughter as the only child. Asserting that his wife was an independent individual, Fadnavis said, “I may not agree with all her views and actions, but as an independent individual, she is free. She is often trolled and has to pay a price for being independent.”
The senior BJP leader said his daughter, who is appearing for her Class X exams, aspires to be a lawyer, adding humorously to a query on his legacy that “I might be the last politician of my family”.
