Al Haqeeqa
- Jharkhand High Court issues notice to State Government on Jharkhand Freedom of Religion Act, 2017
- Madras High Court directs police to provide security to Christmas carol singers
- Delhi High Court directs State to allow OCI to visit India
Muslim Mirror News
New Delhi: Christian NGO ADF on Wednesday expressed its satisfaction over three judgments have been delivered by three different high courts in the country. These judgments have come at a time when the atmosphere in the country is vitiated by communal and Brahminial forces.
Tehmina Arora, a practicing lawyer and Director of ADF India has thanked the Indian judiciary system and the constitution for these judgments protecting religious freedom.
“These are the times we feel proud of our judicial system. The courts have sought to protect the freedom and rights safeguarded under the Constitution of India. No person should be targeted for their faith, ” she said. However, she warned that we need to remain on toes as more to be done.
The three judgments are as follow:
1: Jharkhand High Court after hearing the writ petition of Neelam Devi challenging the constitutionality of the Jharkhand Freedom of Religion Act, 2017 has admitted and issued notice to the State of Jharkhand. Her case is an example of how the Jharkhand FoRA can be misused against anyone, regardless of whether the allegations raised, prima facie show any heinous/criminal intent/act. In Neelam’s case, the complainant in the FIR has alleged that two persons tried to forcibly convert him and his only allegation against Neelam was that the other two would not have attacked/forced him to convert, if she did not influence them to become Christians.
- Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court directed the police in Karur district of Tamil Nadu to grant permission and provide police protection for the peaceful conduct of Christmas carol programs organized by the Evangelical Church of India. The Christians had made an application for the same to the local police since they had faced some disturbances during their 2017 Christmas carols program. However, the police denied them permission on 11 December merely based on an apprehension that a law and order problem could ensue if they were allowed to carry on with their Christmas celebrations.
- Delhi High Court directed the state to permit Kavita, a student of Berea College in USA and an OCI card holder to visit India during the Christmas vacation from 14th December 2018 to 8th January 2019 to meet her mother who resides in Ooty. Kavita’s OCI card was black listed on the recommendation of Consulate General of India (Houston) allegedly on the account of carrying on missionary activities. Since the State has failed to prima facie establish or show any unlawful activity in which Kavita was involved in, the court found it fit to temporarily allow her to enter the country and visit her mother.
