(LifeSiteNews) — Two states in India have passed anti-conversion laws that will make it very difficult to officially convert to the Christian faith.
The bills were passed last week in Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh, as Crux reported. The legislation was heavily criticized by the local Catholic bishops. Several legal challenges to similar laws are currently pending before the Indian Supreme Court.
A group of bishops from Maharashtra issued a statement, slamming the new law for its “troubling lack of neutrality.”
“Rather than fostering harmony,” the bishops say the bill “risks promoting suspicion, division, and injustice.”
“The law appears to disproportionately affect minority communities, raising serious concerns about both its intent and its implementation,” they added.
Auxiliary Bishop Dominic Savio Fernandes of Mumbai told Crux Now that the Maharashtra legislation could significantly hinder the Catholic Church’s Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA).
“RCIA is voluntary, year-long, and guided by priests who provide instruction and spiritual formation,” the bishop said.
He noted that the law requires people who intend to convert, along with the accompanying institutions, to notify authorities 60 days in advance, which could allow relatives and others to file police reports alleging “unlawful conversions.”
“There is no deterrent for false complaints, creating a serious risk of harassment for clergy,” Fernandes warned.
The bishops who published the statement against the law believe priests and other Church officials could be accused of coercion, “brainwashing,” or “glorifying religion” for guiding or teaching RCIA candidates.
“These provisions reverse the burden of proof, exposing clergy to legal scrutiny and intimidation,” Fernandes warned.
He said the Maharashtra legislation “could discourage priests from running RCIA programs, turning ordinary pastoral work into a legal minefield.”
A similar law was passed in Chhattisgarh on March 19, criminalizing conversions carried out through force, allurement, deceit, or digital means. Similar to the Maharashtra law, the Chhattisgarh law is broadly worded and provides for hefty penalties.
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Archbishop Victor Henry Thakur of Raipur, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Council of Chhattisgarh, said the new legislation contradicts the religious liberty guaranteed in the Indian Constitution.
“The Catholic Church teaches that human dignity is founded on God-given freedom, which needs to [be] protected and promoted by liberating people from all forms of slavery,” he noted.
“The Catholic Church, therefore, is always opposed to forced or fraudulent conversions,” Thakur stated, adding, “As such, the Chhattisgarh Freedom of Religion Bill, 2026, seems to be denying the freedom of a person willing to convert.”
Thakur mentioned the law’s provisions “mandating prior permission from the designated civil authority in the name of preventing forced religious conversions.”
“The way it is framed, [the law] seems to deny the constitutional right of freedom to choose religion.”
“It can easily be misused to harass religious minorities,” Thakur said.
India has repeatedly seen cases where Christians have been wrongly accused of converting people by force and deceit and suffered legal consequences for it. Last year, two Catholic nuns were arrested in Chhattisgarh after being accused of forcibly converting a young woman.