Allahabad High Court: Speaking on the recent issue of conversion and dismissing the several clubbed petitions where Hindu girls converted into Islam for the sole purpose of marriage, the Court held that conversion of religion to Islam by girls without their faith and belief in the of tenets of Islam, cannot be said to be a valid conversion. The Court further explained that only those conversions of religion to Islam will be considered bonafide which will done by a major person of sound mind who embraces Islam with his or her free will.
In the case where petitioners are represented by M.S. Ansari, the Court discussed extensively with the help of case laws the meaning of “religion”, Mahomedan, conversion of religion, and when it is bonafide, and evolved principles of conversion of religion into Islam such as
- Conversion to another religion requires change of faith and beliefs in the new religion;
- Change of heart and honest conviction in the tenets of new religion in lieu of tenets of the original religion;
- Conversion into a new religion for worldly gain or benefit, would be religious bigotry;
- If a person purposely undertakes the conversion of another person to his religion, it would encroach upon the freedom of conscience guaranteed to all the citizens under Article 25 of COI.
The Court further held that in the instant case, marriages done by the petitioners are against Sura II Ayat 221 of the Holy Quran which prohibits marriage with the women who do not have faith and belief in Islam. Smt. Noor Jahan Begum @ Anjali Mishra v. State Of
