After outrage over the establishment of a 12 member state level Inter Caste and Interfaith Marriage Coordination Committee headed by the women and child welfare minister Mr Mangal Prabhat Lodha, the Shinde Fadnavis government on Thursday amended the government resolution with a clarification that the committee will work to track interfaith marriages. The government has dropped the ‘’intercaste ‘’word from the committee in its revised government resolution. The government has renamed the committee as Interfaith Marriage-Family Coordination Committee(state level). The government further announced that a helpline will be soon released.
The committee will have the mandate to work to redress all complaints in this regard.
The government has included Mr Irfan Ali Pirzade in the committee and removed Mr Yogesh Deshpande.
As reported by the Free Press Journal, the NCP and Congress had slammed the state government saying that the establishment of a panel to track interfaith and intercaste marriages was a move to spy on who marries whom.
Former minister and NCP leader Mr Jitendra Awahd slammed the state government saying that the government resolution is anti-constitutional and violative of fundamental rights. ‘’The government is not saying that we will collect horoscopes and then after that we will say yes or no for marriages. Is this government or marriage registration office?’’he asked.
Mr Awhad observed that the government’s move in a progressive and liberal Maharashtra was a retrograde and nauseating step. ‘’Stay away from peoples' private lives,’’ he said.
On the other hand, the state Congress general secretary Mr Sachin Sawant said, ‘’The "Inter-caste/Inter-Religious Marriage Family Coordination Committee" constituted by the state government is not only a good example of how not to run the government but also to fulfill a political agenda. On March 15, 2017, to introduce a law to protect inter-caste marriages, an announcement was made by the Fadnavis government. He should tell the public what happened thereafter as Mangal Prabhat Lodha was also the member of that committee. It should be clarified whether the present committee will protect the couples or keep an eye on them and discourage them. The unfortunate murder of Shraddha Palkar is being used by the BJP for political capital.’’
