Three years after promising to repeal Karnataka’s anti-conversion law, the Congress government is no closer to keeping its promise. In that time, 25 cases have been filed under the law across the state, taking the total tally in Karnataka to 46 since the law was first passed.

The BJP government led by Basavaraj Bommai passed the Karnataka Protection of Right to Freedom of Religion Act in September 2022. In just 2021, over 30 cases of violence against Christians were reported. Many of the victims were Dalit Christians. 

Ahead of the 2023 elections, the Congress said in its manifesto that it would “repeal all unjust and other anti-people laws passed by the BJP government within one year of coming to power”. After the first Cabinet meeting on May 20, 2023, then Chief Minister Siddaramaiah reiterated this promise. 

A year later, a Congress minister told TNM that the decision to repeal the law had been buried by “institutional memory loss” — effectively forgotten by both the government and bureaucracy. 

While the repeal of the law remains uncertain, cases naturally continue to be filed under the law. 

According to RTI data, most of the 46 cases appear to be lodged against Christians. Information about seven of these cases is not publicly accessible. 

27 cases allege attempted conversion to Christianity. In at least 2 cases, Christians have been accused of demanding their partners convert after several years of marriage. 

Another twelve cases were lodged against Muslims. Six of these cases claim Muslim men married non-Muslim women to make them convert to Islam. 

An average of........

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