Uttar Pradesh: Yogi govt likely to bring legislation to control religious places

After controversial legislation on Love Jihad, the Yogi Adityanath government is all set to keep the communal cauldron boiling as it is contemplating to bring a Bill to regulate and control the religious places on private and public land.

Highly placed sources in the government said that a presentation regarding this was made before Chief Minister recently.

"He has approved it and suggested some minor changes. The law department will incorporate these changes in the draft bill " the official said.

This is the second time when such a move has been initiated. Earlier, Ram Prakash Gupta government in 2000 had brought a bill on similar lines called 'UP Regulation of Public Religious Building and Places Bill Bill 2000'. The bill was passed by the state assembly despite protests by the Opposition. However, when it went for the assent of Raj Bhawan, the then governor Suraj Bhan sent it to the President for his consent.

The Presidential consent never came and the Bill failed to turn into an Act for implementation.

The sources say that the new law is likely to be called 'Uttar Pradesh Regulation and Registration of Religious Places' and would be moved by the religious affairs department after it is vetted by the department of law .

"The new law is aimed at regulating the functioning of all religious places. This is being done after reports of misappropriation of funds have increased. Besides, there are reports of religious places are being constructed without taking permission, " the official said.

This bill will also regulate the use of building as public religious place or the construction of religious places.

"The motive of this bill is to spread communal hatred. This bill will stop members of a particular community to construct their religious place," Amarnath Agarwal,  a senior Congress leader said.