A new bill targeting forced religious conversions and marriages among minority communities has been introduced in the Punjab Assembly. The Punjab Protection of Minorities Rights Bill 2026 was presented by Falbous Christopher, Chairperson of the Standing Committee on Human Rights and Minorities Affairs, as a private member’s legislation.
The proposed law seeks to declare forced religious conversions illegal and mandates strict penalties for offenders, including imprisonment for up to five years and fines. It also aims to criminalize forced marriages involving minority groups, reinforcing protections for vulnerable populations.
In addition to criminalizing these acts, the bill emphasizes the importance of preventing discrimination against minorities in educational institutions and workplaces. It also includes provisions to safeguard minority places of worship and calls for a comprehensive review of the provincial education curriculum to remove any content that fosters hatred or discrimination against minority communities.
In a related development last week, the Federal Constitutional Court upheld the legality of a marriage between a Christian woman and a Muslim man, rejecting a habeas corpus petition filed by her father. The court ruled that the woman, who had converted to Islam, was an adult and lawfully in the custody of her husband.
The petition was filed by Shahbaz Masih of Lahore, who claimed his daughter Maria Bibi was a minor and had been unlawfully detained following an invalid marriage to Shehryar Ahmad. However, Maria Bibi appeared before a magistrate during the proceedings and affirmed that she married Shehryar Ahmad voluntarily and was not abducted.
