Inter-faith marriage: SC to hear pleas on state laws

One-liner: The SC is scheduled to hear on Jan 2 a batch of pleas challenging controversial state laws regulating religious conversions due to interfaith marriage.

To hear PILs: A bench is scheduled to hear the PILs filed by advocate Vishal Thakre and an NGO 'Citizens for Justice and Peace'.

Muslims harassed: The SC will also hear a plea by the Muslim body 'Jamiat Ulama-I-Hind' which it had allowed last year to become a party to the petitions as it claimed a large number of Muslims are being harassed under these laws across the country.

Controversial: On Feb 17, 2021, the top court permitted the NGO to make Himachal Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh the parties to its pending petition by which it had challenged some controversial state laws regulating conversions due to interfaith marriages.

• The apex court had on Jan 6, 2021, agreed to examine certain controversial new laws of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand regulating religious conversions due to such marriages

Notices issued: It had, however, refused to stay the controversial provisions of the laws and issued notices to both the state govts (Himachal Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh) on the petitions.

Challenged: The pleas, filed by Thakre and the NGO, have challenged the Constitutional validity of the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Religious Conversion Ordinance, 2020, and the Uttarakhand Freedom of Religion Act, 2018, which regulate the religious conversion of people in interfaith marriages.

Love jihad: The plea said the laws passed by Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand against 'Love jihad' and punishments thereof may be declared ultra vires and null and void because they disturb the basic structure of the Constitution as laid down by the law. It claimed they are against public policy and society at large.

Source: PTI