Gujarat says Buddhism ‘different religion’, Hindus need permission to convert

The Gujarat government said that those seeking to convert from Hinduism to Buddhism need to get permission from the District Magistrate. The state government has issued a circular clarifying that Buddhism is a “separate religion”.

The government pointed out that if a person changes his religion and adopts Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism or Jainism, he will have to take permission from the District Magistrate under the provision of the Gujarat Freedom of Religion Act 2003.

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The circular was issued by the Gujarat Home Department on April 8.

It read: “The government has observed that applications for conversion to Buddhism are not being made according to the rules. Every year in Gujarat, people were converted to Buddhism during Dussehra and other festivals and the rules were not followed.”

“Applicants were sometimes found saying that prior permission is not required for conversion from Hinduism to Buddhism,” it added.

According to the circular, in cases where applications seeking prior permission for conversion were filed, the concerned offices disposed of such applications by holding that Sikhism, Jainism and Buddhism fall under Hinduism under Article 25 (2) of the Constitution.

However, the government clarified that according to the Gujarat Religious Freedom Act, Buddhism will be considered a separate religion. A person who converts another person from Hinduism to Buddhism, Sikhism or Jainism has to take prior permission from the District Magistrate. Apart from this, the person converting religion will have to give information in the prescribed format to the District Magistrate.

Published By: Anuja Jha Published On: Apr 11, 2024