A plea challenging the Uttar Pradesh government’s ordinance criminalising religious conversion via marriage was filed before the Supreme Court on Thursday, reported Bar and Bench. The petition, filed by lawyers Vishal Thakre and Abhay Singh Yadav and law researcher Pranvesh, said the ordinance was against public policy and fundamental rights of the people.
The petitioners contended that the ordinance will be misused to falsely implicate people and will lead to chaos and fear. “This ordinance can become a potent tool in the hands of bad elements of the society to falsely implicate anyone and there are probabilities of falsely implicating persons who are not involved in any such acts [contemplated under the ordinance] and it will result in grave injustice,” read the petition. The petitioners also questioned the validity of a similar law passed by the Uttarakhand government in 2018.
The ordinance was promulgated by Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel on November 28,…