On Wednesday Vadodara court adjourned the hearing of the anticipatory bail of two nuns who were booked under the Gujarat Freedom of Religion Act of 2003 for hurting Hindu sentiments and luring young girls into adoption of Christianity, in a shelter home run by Missionaries of Charity.
RT Panchal the Additional Sessions Judge advised the DGP, who is appearing on the behalf of Vadodara Police, to discuss and clarify the usage of sections 3 and 4, under which the case was filled, with the Advocate General of Gujarat. Vadodara DGP Anil Desai stated that the court has asked him to contact the Advocate General and discuss the scope of the stay order of Section 3 and 4 of the Gujarat Freedom of Religion Act of 2003. These section are specified in the context of forceful conversion through interfaith marriages. The next hearing is on 31st of December and reply will be presented in front of the court after discussing the applicability of these sections in this case.
The woman shown as the victim in this case has filed an affidavit stating that she has not converted to another religion forcefully and it was with her consent that she was married into a Christian household. She also stated that the police case has caused damage to her image in the societal context.
The police has opposed the anticipatory bail on various grounds, stating the forceful conversion of the women and serving non vegetarian food to the girls living in the shelter. The police also informed the court about the organisation and also that they were forcing girls to wear a cross and read books of the Christian Faith with an intention to lure them towards this religion. The institution has been booked under Sections of IPC for deliberately uttering words to wound religious sentiments of a person (Section 298), Deliberate and malicious acts to outrage feelings of any class by insulting its religious beliefs [Section 295(A)].
