Sir: PTI MNA Rumesh Kumar presented a bill in the National Assembly on March 26 to end forced conversions in Pakistan. However, the manner in which the term forced conversions’ has been applied in the aforementioned bill is troubling.
According to the bill, any conversion under the age of 18 to Islam should be deemed as forced, and hence illegal. One wonders how this requirement will prevent forced conversions. On the other hand, this is a ploy to create deliberate hurdles in the path of citizens who want to convert to Islam but happen to be under the age of 18. So it would be a travesty of justice to place such a restriction as suggested by the bill. As far as forcing someone to convert to Islam goes, this is already prohibited in Islam, through an explicit verse of the Quran. Therefore, no one can justify forced conversions.
MUHAMMAD NATIQ
Karachi