Madhya Pradesh plans to impose death penalty for forced religious conversion of girls: CM Yadav
Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav announced that his government would introduce the death penalty for those involved in the forced religious conversion of girls.
Addressing a government event to mark International Women’s Day in Bhopal on Saturday, Yadav mentioned that the provision of death penalty for the religious conversion of girls will be made along the same lines as the punishment for raping minors, as reported by The Hindu.
The Bharatiya Janata Party leader stated that a provision for the death penalty has been made for those who rape daughters, emphasising that they will not spare anyone who rapes girls through force or deceit. “We don’t want to give them a chance to live at any cost. Besides this, a provision for capital punishment is also being made under the Madhya Pradesh Freedom of Religion Act for those who religiously convert [girls],” Yadav was quoted as saying by the news outlet.
The state government issued a statement pertaining to this matter and stated that strict action would be taken against those who “forcefully or by luring people to marry or convert their religion”.
“Chief Minister Dr Yadav said that the government will take the strictest steps against those who misbehave with girls, women and daughters. The culprits will be given death penalty. No culprit will be spared under any circumstances. Religious Freedom Act is in force in Madhya Pradesh to take strict action against those who forcefully or by luring people to marry or convert their religion,” the government statement read.
The Madhya Pradesh Freedom of Religion Act, 2021, prohibits unlawful religious conversions through misrepresentation, force, coercion or fraudulent means. The law also stipulates up to 10 years of imprisonment and a fine of Rs 50,000 for individuals found guilty of forcing religious conversions.
Meanwhile, Congress leader Arif Masood has raised concerns over Yadav's announcement, urging him to first clarify what he means by forced conversion.
"First, the chief minister should clarify what forced conversion means. Also, there are still missing girls in Bhopal. Recently, a girl from Itkhedi went missing, and her family has been in distress for the past three days. The CM talks about strict action, but he has yet to locate her or the accused. If he takes action in such matters, we will welcome the decision, but otherwise, these are just announcements," Masood told news agency ANI.
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Trump pauses Project Freedom, claims great progress for final agreement with Iran
Washington (PTI): President Donald Trump has suspended “Project Freedom,” to escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz, claiming progress in negotiations with Iran toward an agreement to end the war.
In a post on Truth Social on Tuesday, Trump said, “Great progress has been made toward a complete and final agreement with representatives of Iran.”
“Based on the request of Pakistan and other Countries, the tremendous Military Success that we have had during the Campaign against the Country of Iran and, additionally, the fact that Great Progress has been made toward a Complete and Final Agreement with Representatives of Iran, we have mutually agreed that, while the Blockade will remain in full force and effect, Project Freedom (The Movement of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz) will be paused for a short period of time to see whether or not the Agreement can be finalized and signed," Trump said.
Project Freedom was launched on Monday to escort ships, stranded due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, out to safety. Trump had announced the operation on Sunday and the US Central Command began implementing it the next day.
However, the Project led to friction in the vicinity of the narrow seaway, a key route for transporting one-fifth of the global oil supplies, with the UAE claiming that its ships were attacked by Iran. The US also claimed to have destroyed several Iranian small boats.
Trump’s statement on Truth Social came hours after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that Operation Epic Fury, launched on February 28, had concluded as its objectives have been achieved.
"Operation Epic Fury is concluded. We achieved the objectives of that operation. We're not cheering for an additional situation to occur. We would prefer the path of peace. What @POTUS would prefer is a deal... that is, so far, not the route that Iran has chosen," Rubio told a press conference at the White House on Tuesday.
On Project Freedom, Rubio said the goal was to rescue almost 23,000 civilians from 87 different countries who were trapped inside the Persian Gulf and left for dead by the Iranian regime.
"This is not an offensive operation. This is a defensive operation, and what that means is very simple: there’s no shooting unless we're shot at first. We’re not attacking them, but if they're attacking us or they’re attacking a ship, you need to respond to that," Rubio said.
