Sunday, 04 December 2022 | PNS | DEHRADUN
The Bharatiya Janata Party State president Mahendra Bhatt said that Uttarakhand has become the State which has brought an empowered law with provision of maximum jail sentence for those guilty of forced religious conversion. Stating that this is a matter of pride for the people of Uttarakhand, he said that the policy and intent of the BJP was clear which is why the Congress which opposes the BJP on the roads had to support the bill in the Vidhan Sabha. The BJP State president said this during an informal interaction with media persons at the party’s State office here on Saturday.
Bhatt said that the BJP will start a special communication programme to raise public awareness on the anti-conversion and women reservation laws. He said that out of the nine States where anti-conversion laws are in place, Uttarakhand now has the provision for three to 10 years jail sentence for those found guilty. Further, provision has also been made for upto Rs five lakh compensation to the victim from the person found guilty. “This has been done so that those involved in carrying out religious conversion through force, fraud or inducement receive strict punishment and to instill the fear of law among such elements. Similarly, despite the various legal and other hurdles along with the issues raised by the opposition, the Dhami government succeeded in passing the bill to provide 30 per cent horizontal reservation to women with Uttarakhand domicile in government jobs in the State,” he said while also thanking the opposition and independent MLAs for their support in the Vidhan Sabha.
Bhatt said that the BJP government has done its work and the laws are going to be enacted soon. The BJP will now undertake a special campaign to raise public awareness on these two subjects. The party’s office bearers and spokespersons will hold Press conferences in all the districts to raise awareness, he added.
