A vacation bench of the Supreme Court of India has issued a stay on the Allahabad High Court's directive requiring the Vice Chancellor and other officials of Sam Higginbottom University of Agriculture Technology and Science (SHUATS) to surrender before the court by December 20, 2023. The High Court had also declined to quash an FIR against these officials, accusing them of coercing a woman into adopting Christianity through employment offers and other inducements.

During the hearing before Justices Aniruddha Bose and KV Vishwanathan, Senior Advocate Siddharth Dave, representing the accused petitioners, emphasized the urgency, citing the impending surrender deadline and the directive to file a chargesheet. The court granted a stay on the impugned judgment until January 5, 2024, or until further orders, protecting the petitioners from arrest during this interim period.

The case is scheduled to be listed before Chief Justice DY Chandrachud upon the court's reopening after winter vacations.

In the contested order, the Allahabad High Court underscored that no authentic religious institution, whether it be a Church, Temple, or Mosque, would condone such malpractices.

The bench, consisting of Justice Rahul Chaturvedi and Justice Mohd. Azhar Husain Idrisi, stated that prevailing upon a vulnerable young girl, providing gifts, clothing, and other amenities, and coercing her into baptism is an unpardonable sin.

The FIR, filed in November 2023, alleges that the victim, a lower-middle-class woman, was enticed into Christianity through gifts and clothing. The accused, including the SHUATS VC, allegedly pressured her to recruit other women for conversion and engage in illegal activities. The victim further claimed she was subjected to regular sexual exploitation. Despite the accused arguing that the victim fabricated the story in retaliation for her job termination in 2022, the court deemed the allegations serious and horrifying.

Case: Rajendra Bihari Lal And Ors vs. The State Of Uttar Pradesh And Ors

Petition(s) for Special Leave to Appeal (Crl.) No(s). 16557/2023.

Click to read/download Order.