Maharashtra Government Forms 13-Member Panel To Monitor Interfaith Marriages

The Maharashtra government led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde formed a 13-member state-level committee on Thursday to monitor and maintain a record of interfaith marriages, couples with such wedlock, and their families.

The 'interfaith marriage-family coordination committee' will be headed by the state's Women and Child Development Minister Mangal Prabhat Lodha. In the same regard, a government order was issued by the Women and Child Development Department.

Including Minister Lodha, there are 13 members in the committee, and the deputy commissioner in the Women and Child Development Department is the member-secretary of the panel. The couples indulging in interfaith marriages will be provided with a helpline number which they can access if required.

Duties Of The Committee

The panel members will be responsible for monitoring interfaith marriages across the state of Maharashtra. The order reads, "Panel's scope includes taking stock of interfaith marriages that occur after the elopement of couples or are performed at religious places or are registered or non-registered, said the order."

According to a report by NDTV, the committee will also provide counselling to women who have done interfaith marriages. The sources suggest that the decision has been made after considering the incidents occurring all across the country within the boundary of interfaith marriages.

Soon after the formation of the 13-member panel, the political experts suggest that Bharatiya Janata Party and Shinde's Sena-led Maharashtra government are preparing grounds for a future bid to implement an anti-religious conversion bill. According to current statistics, nine states have already implemented anti-conversion laws.

Reactions On Monitoring Interfaith Marriages

The Maharashtra government's decision to track interfaith marriages has received a blend of reactions from intellectuals and netizens. A Twitter user reacting to the decision said, "Right to marry out of choice is integral to Article 21, example- right to life and liberty- Supreme Court. #Maharashtra committee to track interfaith marriage is unconstitutional."

Another user wrote, "That is what is going to provide basic necessities like water to the drought-prone areas in Maharashtra, help the ladies, children who walk miles to get water. And not to say help stop the deaths of farmers etc. Tracing interfaith marriage is critical."

A sociology professor and media commentator, Radhakrishnan P, opposed the decision and mentioned that data collection on interfaith marriage can be insidious with far-reaching social implications and is a retrograde step, invading the privacy of the people, and should be thwarted.

However, some people argued that the issue of 'Love Jihad' in the state of Maharashtra has been prevalent, and the decision stands for the betterment of people in the backdrop of the Shraddha Walkar murder case.

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