Dehradun: 'The Kerala Story' was watched by the Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, Pushkar Singh Dhami and his family.
Dhami watched the movie on Tuesday at Centrio Mall, Hathibarkala and has different thoughts about the movie and the issue of conversion in the country.
Starting with his appreciation of the movie he said, "The Kerala Story is such a film which shows how terrorism is being spread in the country without bullets and bombs. The fact has also been displayed in the film that how girls are being brainwashed and converted to religion."
He also narrated why it is important to watch such movies by stating, "This film will introduce reality and promote public awareness against forceful religious conversion and terrorism." Chief Minister also commented on his state's approach to tackling forceful religious conversion. Dhami said, "Religious conversion was taking place in different ways in the state as well. It was becoming a serious issue for the future of the state. Keeping this in view, we have decided to completely ban religious conversions in Devbhoomi Uttarakhand. A strict law on conversion has been made by the state government. In this, a provision has been made for 10 years of rigorous imprisonment for those who convert by force or inducement, in which the cases of conversion are divided into two categories."
The minister later described the punishment laws, "The punishment for single conversion is less, while the punishment for mass conversion will be more. On being found guilty of mass conversion, there is a provision for imprisonment of three to 10 years and a fine of up to Rs 50,000. While there is a provision of imprisonment of two to seven years and a fine of Rs 25,000 for the conversion of a person. He said that this is an important initiative taken by the state government in order to preserve the original form of Devbhoomi Uttarakhand along with its culture and distinctive identity and avoid any unnecessary religious conversions in the state."
"That along with the conversion, the encroachment done on the government land in Devbhoomi is being identified by our government and removed strictly. Illegal encroachment in the state will not be tolerated under any circumstances and strict action will be taken against those who commit such acts as per rules," the CM added. The film 'The Kerala Story' features actor Adah Sharma in the lead role released on May 5, 2023. —ANI
