Madhya Pradesh officials will close madrasas found facilitating religious conversions, BJP legislator Rameshwar Sharma announced on Tuesday. District collectors received orders to act immediately against such institutions, and he warned that clergy members involved would face consequences. The National Human Rights Commission launched an investigation after receiving complaints about an alleged conversion network operating through 27 unregistered madrasas across multiple districts.
The complaint filed on Sept. 26 claims 556 Hindu children were targeted for conversion to Islam. Commission officials directed the state School Education Department to conduct an inquiry, and they requested a report within 15 days. Madhya Pradesh enacted anti-conversion legislation in January 2020, followed by the Religious Freedom Act in 2021, which prohibits conversions through force, fraud, or marriage.
The complaint filed on Sept. 26 claims 556 Hindu children were targeted for conversion to Islam. Commission officials directed the state School Education Department to conduct an inquiry, and they requested a report within 15 days. Madhya Pradesh enacted anti-conversion legislation in January 2020, followed by the Religious Freedom Act in 2021, which prohibits conversions through force, fraud, or marriage.
