Uttarakhand Cabinet Decisions: HC To Be Shifted To Haldwani, Forced Conversion Law Made Stringent
The meeting, chaired by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, passed a total of 26 resolutions on Wednesday.
New Delhi: The Uttarakhand cabinet on Wednesday decided to shift the high court from Nainital to Haldwani, news agency ANI reported.
The meeting, chaired by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, also made strict amendments in the conversion law, wherein forced conversion will now be a punishable offence with provision of 10 years of punishment under the new law.
In the cabinet meeting, strict amendments were made in the conversion law in Uttarakhand. Forced conversion will now be a cognizable offence in Uttarakhand. Provision of 10 years of punishment in the new law. Forced conversion and love jihad will be banned.
— ANI (@ANI) November 16, 2022
The cabinet passed a total of 26 resolutions on Wednesday, which included rehabilitation of 1,326 families to be affected by the construction of the Jamrani dam and boosting the subsidy on fodder and silage.
Notably, the proposal to shift the Uttarakhand high court to a new location is being opposed by a section of lawyers of the high court who feel that it will be a loss for the hill areas of the state and goes against the principles that led to the creation of the state.
Chief Minister Dhami last year had said that the Uttarakhand police had been asked to to take strict action against forced religious conversions and activities of ''love jihad'' in the hill state.
Dhami had then said the state government will make the law against forced religious conversions more stringent.
Earlier in April 2018, the Uttarakhand government had passed The Uttarakhand Freedom Of Religion Act, 2018, under which "forced or fraudulent conversions done through force or allurement" are non-bailable offences and can lead to imprisonment up to five years.
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