Over 100 retired senior civil servants and diplomats urged the Hindu nationalist leader of Uttar Pradesh state to repeal a new law criminalising forced religious conversion of brides, warning in an open letter that it risked fuelling communal tensions. Although no religion is specified in the legislation, critics say it is aimed against the country’s Muslim minority. Hardline Hindu groups have accused Muslim men of waging a campaign, dubbed ‘Love Jihad’, to lure Hindu women to Islam with promises of marriage. Thirty Muslim men were arrested in Uttar Pradesh under the new law earlier this month, and could face jail terms if found guilty. “It’s an open letter and, therefore, it’s been placed in the public domain,” said Wajahat Habibullah, India’s former chief information commissioner and one of the signatories.

Source: dna December 30, 2020 11:15 UTC