A Special NIA Court in Lucknow, on Tuesday convicted 16 individuals in connection with an alleged mass religious conversion case. Judge Viveka Nand Sharan Tripathi of the Additional District & Sessions Court sentenced Maulana Kaleem Siddiqui, Maulana Umar Gautam, and ten others to life imprisonment under multiple sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including Sections 417, 153-A, 153-B, 295A, 121, and 123, along with provisions of the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act. Four others were sentenced to ten years of rigorous imprisonment. A detailed judgment is expected to be released soon.
Condemning the judgment, Students Islamic Organisation of India (SIO), in a statement, said: “The trial and judgment against Maulana Kaleem Siddiqui, Umar Gautam, and others starkly contradict the basic values of humanity and the freedoms enshrined in our Constitution. It represents another gross miscarriage of justice under the Hindutva regime. This verdict suppresses the fundamental rights of freedom of expression and the freedom to practice and propagate one’s faith.”
The statement added: “These actions are part of a broader, systematic effort by right-wing forces to undermine the organic process of spiritual discovery, engagement with religious discourses, and the voluntary exercise of freedom of conscience. We strongly condemn this judgment and hope higher courts will revoke such an unconstitutional order.”
