New Delhi: The Supreme Court reiterated that forced religious conversion is serious. An affidavit was sought from the central government on the matter. The court’s remarks came while considering a petition filed by BJP leader and lawyer Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay.
The Supreme Court said that forced or fraudulent religious conversion is a serious matter. The Centre has been asked to collect information from the state governments and submit a detailed affidavit regarding the laws preventing forced religious conversion. The petition will be heard again on 12th of this month. It is suggested to submit an affidavit within that.
Last month, Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking directions to the Centre and the states to prevent forced religious conversion. Observing that the petition was serious, the court sought an opinion from the Centre. Apart from this, the court also directed the Centre to inform about the steps that can be taken to prevent forced religious conversion.
According to this, in the affidavit issued at the end of last month, the central government had declared that forced religious conversion is unconstitutional. The Centre has also stated that steps have been taken to prevent forced religious conversion.
Comments