Petitions Against Anti-Conversion Laws: SC Seeks Replies from States in Four Weeks
The Supreme Court on Tuesday (16 September 2025) directed several States, including Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana, Jharkhand, and Karnataka, to submit their responses within four weeks to applications seeking a stay on their anti-conversion laws.
A Bench of Chief Justice BR Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran was hearing a batch of petitions challenging the constitutional validity of these laws. The matter will be taken up again after six weeks.
Senior Advocate Chander Uday Singh, appearing for Citizens for Justice and Peace, argued that these so-called “Freedom of Religion Acts” are in fact restricting religious freedom and disproportionately affecting minorities and interfaith marriages. He highlighted the 2024 amendment to the Uttar Pradesh law, which increased punishment for unlawful religious conversions through marriage to a minimum of 20 years, extendable to life imprisonment, along with tougher bail conditions and provisions allowing third parties to lodge complaints. Singh pointed out that such provisions have led to widespread harassment by vigilante groups.
Advocate Vrinda Grover, representing the National Federation of Indian Women, also filed an application seeking a stay on the laws.
The Court was informed that both the Gujarat High Court and the Madhya Pradesh High Court had previously stayed parts of their respective state laws, though the States have challenged these orders before the Supreme Court.
The Bench instructed Additional Solicitor General KM Nataraj, representing the States, to file responses. Senior Advocates Indira Jaising, Sanjay Hegde, MR Shamshad, Sanjay Parikh, among others, appeared for the petitioners. Advocates Srishti Agnihotri and Ruchira Goel were appointed as nodal counsel to coordinate documents from both sides.
The Bench also separated a PIL filed by Advocate Ashwini Upadhyaya, which sought a nationwide law criminalising religious conversion by coercion or deceit.
This ongoing case is one of the most significant challenges to state-level anti-conversion laws in recent years. The petitions, led by Citizens for Justice and Peace v. State of Uttar Pradesh & Anr. (WP(Crl) No. 428/2020), seek to strike down provisions that criminalise conversions, alleging they violate fundamental rights under the Constitution.
