Supreme Court notice to Centre, 12 states on plea challenging anti-conversion laws

The petition has also argued that requiring government approval for conversion violates citizens’ right to privacy.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant issued notice to the Union law ministry, and to the governments of Himachal Pradesh, Odisha, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Arunachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Jharkhand and Rajasthan.

The petition was filed by the National Council of Churches in India, which submitted that the anti-conversion laws “incentivise” vigilante groups to commit acts of violence against religious minorities, The Hindu reported.