The Supreme Court stayed criminal proceedings against a priest booked over remarks on religion, issuing notice to Uttar Pradesh. The bench held trial shall remain stayed while examining the plea challenging FIR and allegations of hurting religious sentiments.
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court stayed a criminal case against a Christian priest after Uttar Pradesh Police booked him for allegedly remarking that Christianity is the only true religion.
A Bench comprising Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta issued notice to the Uttar Pradesh government on the priest’s plea, in which he challenged the criminal proceedings. Until the petition is decided, the trial will remain stayed during the pendency of the challenge.
The case stems from the priest’s statements, which are alleged to have outraged the religious sentiments of Hindus.
Earlier, the Allahabad High Court had refused to quash the proceedings. It held that it is not acceptable for any individual to assert that their faith is the only true religion, as such a claim amounts to disparaging other religions.
Justice Saurabh Srivastava had observed that India is a secular country and that no religion can claim to be “only true religion”.
The Court said,
“By bare perusal of the narrations made in the FIR wherein it has been mentioned that in his prayer meet, applicant frequently states that there is only one religion which is Christian and also hurts the sentiments of a particular religion i.e. Hindu, whereas India is a land where people of all faiths and beliefs in secular state as defined by Constitution of India, live together, therefore, it is wrong for any religion to claim that it is the only true religion as it implies a disparagement of other faiths,”
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The High Court further noted that Section 295A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) bars deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage the religious feelings of any class of citizens. Accordingly, it ruled that the conduct alleged in the present matter fell within the scope of Section 295-A of the IPC.
The priest had challenged the chargesheet and also the trial court’s order that had taken cognisance of the offence.
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