Panaji: The Goa cabinet has approved a bill against religious conversion, proposing life imprisonment among other stringent penalties, and it will be tabled in the state assembly's monsoon session beginning August 31, officials said on Thursday.
The bill proposes strict punishment for religious conversion allegedly carried out through force, coercion, undue influence, allurement, fraudulent means or marriage.
Under the bill, offenders may face up to life imprisonment, and it proposes fines of at least Rs 50,000 and compensation of up to Rs 5 lakh to victims.
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The state cabinet on Wednesday approved the Goa Prohibition of Unlawful Conversions of Religion Bill, 2026, a senior government official said.
It will be introduced in the state assembly during the upcoming three-day monsoon session, the official said.
The bill also seeks to declare the marriage as "void" if it is found that it was done only for religious conversion.
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Offenders, including Hindu priests and Muslim clerics, could face a minimum of 10 years' imprisonment, the official said.
Under the bill, unlawful conversion of a minor, a person with disabilities, a woman, or a member of the Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes would attract rigorous imprisonment of 5 to 14 years along with a minimum fine of Rs 1 lakh, the official added.
Various other states like Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, Chhattisgarh and Himachal Pradesh have already enacted anti-conversion legislation.
