The Pramod Sawant-led government on Monday finally backed away from introducing its controversial anti-conversion bill in the Goa Legislative Assembly, bowing to mounting opposition from political parties and growing unease within its own ranks over legislation that critics warned could deepen communal divisions in the State. Welcoming the government's decision to keep the controversial 'Goa Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Bill, 2026 on the back-burner, the Catholic Association of Goa (CAG) has warned that the move could be little more than a temporary reprieve. It has demanded that the government declare the said Bill formally withdrawn and give an assurance that it would not be brought back in its present form or under a modified version in any future session. In a way what the members of CAG are saying over the above subject is absolutely true. Because who knows, the government might have temporary kept the bill on hold for the time-being fearing a backlash of the Christian community in the upcoming assembly elections and might go to reintroduce the same after making a comeback soon after the elections in Goa.
JERRY FERNANDES, Saligao
