Anti-Conversion Laws in India
Legal Landscape
Multiple Indian states have enacted Freedom of Religion Acts or anti-conversion laws since Odisha passed the first such statute in 1967. These laws do not ban religious conversion per se but prohibit conversion achieved through force, fraud, inducement, or allurement. Their constitutional validity has been contested but largely upheld by the Supreme Court, with important nuances.
- States with active anti-conversion laws (as of 2025-26): Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, and Karnataka (among others).
- The Supreme Court in Stainislaus v. State of Madhya Pradesh (1977) upheld early anti-conversion statutes, ruling that the right to "propagate" religion under Article 25 does not include the right to convert another person.
- A constitutional challenge to multiple states' anti-conversion laws is currently pending before the Supreme Court.
- Some states require prior government permission (notification to District Magistrate) before any conversion — a provision that critics argue effectively allows state surveillance of religious practice.
- The laws' constitutionality hinges on whether the state government's entry in the Seventh Schedule (Concurrent List, Entry 1: public order; State List, Entry 1: public order) extends to regulating conversion.
● Tracked since February 26, 2026 · last seen May 13, 2026 · updates as the daily brief publishes
13 May '26
Freedom of Conscience and Religious Conversion: What Article 25 Protects
Polity & Governance
19 Mar '26
Chhattisgarh Tables Freedom of Religion Bill 2026 to Curb Forced Conversions
Polity & Governance
Polity & Governance
Freedom of Religion
Polity & Governance
Article 25 and the Right to Freedom of Religion
Polity & Governance
Constitutional Framework
Polity & Governance
Article 21
Polity & Governance
Articles 14, 15, and 16
Polity & Governance
*Rev. Stainislaus v. State of Madhya Pradesh* (1977)
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