Karnataka’s new anti-conversion law criminalises key dimensions of what it is to be a human—the impulse to charity, the freedom to love and to choose a faith of one’s choice—in a manner that undermines or freely violates rights afforded to every Indian citizen, violates Supreme-Court rulings and reverses a fundamental tenet of criminal law. Promulgated by the state’s governor in an extraordinary move reserved only for emergencies, the new law is likely to further embolden Hindu extremist groups.