The Rajasthan Assembly on Tuesday passed a Bill to prevent religious conversions with stringent provisions against force, fraud, allurement or coercion, punishable with steep penalties, including life imprisonment. Those returning to their “ancestral religion” have been exempted from the law.
The Opposition Congress MLAs boycotted the debate on the Bill and staged a walkout, alleging that the new legislation would break communal harmony and create tension in society. A similar Bill, earlier tabled in the Assembly in February this year, was withdrawn and replaced with the new Bill.
The Rajasthan Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Bill, 2025, contains provisions for life imprisonment, fines up to ₹1 crore, and confiscation and demolition of properties where mass conversions take place. The fines imposed on the offenders will be paid to the victims, in addition to compensation awarded by the court.
Previous attempts
In 2006, the then Chief Minister, Vasundhara Raje, attempted to enact an anti-conversion law in Rajasthan, but the then President, Pratibha Patil, returned the Bill following opposition from the Congress, human rights groups, and minority organisations. An amended version of the Bill was also stuck with the Centre in 2008.
