Daijiworld Media Network - Kolkata
Kolkata, June 26: West Bengal chief minister Suvendu Adhikari on Friday announced that his government will introduce stringent legislation to curb alleged incidents of forced religious conversion and what he described as "Love Jihad" in the state.
Addressing a programme marking the 189th birth anniversary of Rishi Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, the author of India's national song Vande Mataram, the Chief Minister said the state would pursue governance inspired by the ideals of Dr Shyama Prasad Mukherjee.
Adhikari stated that, along with implementing the Uniform Civil Code (UCC), his government intends to enact separate laws aimed at tackling alleged cases of land encroachment in the name of "Land Jihad", forced religious conversions and "Love Jihad".
"West Bengal will move forward with the slogan of Dr Shyama Prasad Mukherjee as its guiding principle. Along with the Uniform Civil Code, the state government is going to bring strict laws against Land Jihad, Love Jihad and forced religious conversion," he said.
The Chief Minister also asserted that his administration would adopt a firm approach against anti-national activities and illegal infiltration.
"West Bengal is the land of Chaitanya Dev, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and Dr Shyama Prasad Mukherjee. Besides bringing strict laws against Land Jihad, Love Jihad and forceful religious conversion, we are committed to first sending illegal infiltrators to holding centres and from there to the place they came from," he said.
Reiterating his government's stand on national security, Adhikari said there would be no tolerance for activities considered anti-national.
"The people of West Bengal completed half the task of protecting the state from anti-national activities through the recently concluded Assembly elections. We will complete the remaining task. There will be no place in West Bengal for those who ridicule Operation Sindoor, insult the nation or remain silent on the Pahalgam attack," he said.
The Chief Minister, however, maintained that individuals who had sought refuge in India after facing religious persecution would continue to receive the benefits of citizenship under the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).
Adhikari further announced that five new Bills are scheduled to be introduced in the West Bengal Assembly on Monday. Among them, he said, the two most significant would be the proposed Uniform Civil Code Bill and another legislation aimed at strengthening measures against anti-social activities in the state.
If enacted, the Uniform Civil Code legislation would make West Bengal the fourth state in the country to adopt a common civil law framework replacing religion-based personal laws with a uniform set of civil laws applicable to all citizens, irrespective of religion, caste or tribe. According to the Chief Minister, Uttarakhand, Gujarat and Assam have already implemented similar legal frameworks.