Buddhism ‘Different Religion’, Hindus Need Permission To Convert: Gujarat Govt

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Gandhinagar: The Gujarat government has issued a circular stating that Buddhism is a “separate religion”, and anyone seeking to convert from Hinduism to Buddhism needs to get permission from the District Magistrate.

The circular was issued by the Gujarat Home Department on April 8, reported India Today.

“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,” the circular stated.

Applications which sought permission for conversion were disposed of by the concerned offices by holding that Sikhism, Jainism and Buddhism fall under Hinduism under Article 25 (2) of the Constitution.

The BJP-led government clarified that according to Gujarat Religious Freedom Act, Buddhism will be considered a separate religion. Hence a person who wants to convert from Hinduism to Buddhism, Sikhism or Jainism has to take prior permission from District Magistrate.

Also, the person converting religion will have to provide information in the prescribed format to the District Magistrate.