New Delhi: The Supreme Court has quashed five FIRs lodged in Uttar Pradesh’s Fatehpur district against the Vice Chancellor of Sam Higginbottom University of Agriculture, Technology and Sciences (SHUATS) and other officials over allegations of mass religious conversions. The court ruled that criminal law cannot be used to harass innocent citizens.
A bench of Justices J.B. Pardiwala and Manoj Misra delivered the verdict, stating that the FIRs were legally flawed and unsupported by credible evidence. Justice Pardiwala, who authored the 158-page judgment, noted procedural lapses and declared that continuing the prosecution would be a travesty of justice.
The FIRs were filed under several sections, including the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2021. The court held that the complainant who filed the case was not legally qualified to do so under Section 4 of the Act, which only allowed aggrieved persons, their family members, or guardians to file complaints.
While a 2024 amendment to the Act now permits anyone to file a complaint, the court clarified that this change does not apply retrospectively to the present case. The bench, however, allowed investigations into a few other Indian Penal Code charges to continue, while maintaining interim protection from arrest for the accused.
The decision is being viewed as a crucial interpretation of the state’s anti-conversion law and a reminder that such legislation should not be misused. SHUATS, located in Prayagraj, is one of Uttar Pradesh’s well-known agricultural universities.
