Uttar Pradesh: 833 Arrested in Cases of Religious Conversion Since November 2020

Lucknow, May 10: Amid the buzz over the film 'The Kerala Story' based on religious conversion, the official data from the Uttar Pradesh government has revealed that 427 cases have been registered and 833 accused arrested since the UP Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act came into force in November 2020.

The Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act was put into effect in Uttar Pradesh by the Yogi government on November 27, 2020. Since then, the government has been taking severe measures against those who are accused of practising love jihad and religious conversion, said an official statement. Forced Religious Conversion: ‘Its a Menace’ Centre Tells Supreme Court; Next Hearing on December 5.

According to the information available, 427 conversion-related cases were reported in Uttar Pradesh between January 1, 2021, and April 30, 2023. In this, more than 833 arrests have been made so far. In 185 cases, the victims have even confessed before the court that they were forcibly converted. Simultaneously, 65 cases of conversion of minors have been registered so far, the statement said. Right to Freedom of Religion Doesn’t Include Fundamental Right To Convert People, Centre to Supreme Court.

In total, Uttar Pradesh registered 427 cases of religious conversion. The Bareilly zone reported a maximum of 86 cases while, 59 cases were registered in Gorakhpur, 53 in Lucknow, 47 in Meerut, 46 in Prayagraj, and 39 in Varanasi. In terms of commissionerate, 20 cases were registered in Lucknow, 19 in Kanpur, 13 in Prayagraj, and 10 in Noida.

Furthermore, 299 were named in FIRs registered in Prayagraj, 235 in Bareilly, 153 in Lucknow zone, 141 in Meerut, 135 in Varanasi and 128 in Gorakhpur. A maximum of 121 cases came to light in Prayagraj zone while 34 cases were detected in Lucknow, 28 in Bareilly, 27 in Agra and 16 each in Gorakhpur and Varanasi zones.

In terms of arrests of the accused, Prayagraj zone tops the list with 163 arrests. Besides, 137 arrests were made in Bareilly, 124 in Lucknow, 101 in Varanasi, 81 in Gorakhpur, 65 in Meerut, 37 in the Agra zone and 21 in Kanpur.

So far, 65 cases of conversion of minors have been registered, including 12 cases related to minors registered in the Meerut zone, 10 in Gorakhpur, nine in Bareilly, five in Agra, four cases each in Lucknow and Prayagraj and two cases in Varanasi.

There were five cases registered in Commissionerate Lucknow, four each in Kanpur and Ghaziabad, three in Prayagraj, and two in Noida. Due to the stern action of the UP Police, the statement said the cases under investigation are also being disposed of quickly.

Only 13 cases are under consideration in the Lucknow zone and 12 in the Gorakhpur zone. The investigation was going on in the remaining nine cases in Prayagraj, right in Bareilly, three in Meerut and two cases in Varanasi. Actions are quickly being taken to dispose of those cases.

According to the Prohibition of Unlawful Religious Conversion Ordinance, 2020, the figures from January 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023, reveal that as many as 185 victims have confessed before the court that they were forcibly converted. 47 victims in Bareilly, 32 in Meerut, 13 in Prayagraj, 12 in Gorakhpur, 11 in Agra, 10 in Lucknow, and 10 in Varanasi zone have confessed the same.

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