The Supreme Court on Friday gave the Centre a month to respond to a petition for classifying religious minorities based on their population in each state and transferred to itself similar petitions pending before three high courts.

In August 2020, the court issued a notice to the centre on the petition filed by Delhi BJP leader and lawyer Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay, but the centre did not respond. Attorney-General Tushar Mehta appeared at the centre on Friday and asked for a response within a week.

“Can you do it in a week because so far you haven’t done it,” said a group of judges Sanjay Kishan Kaul and MM Sundresh. However, it extended the time and said: “As a last chance, four weeks are given to submit a response.”

Upadhyay, in his petition, questions the validity of Section 2(f) of the National Commission on Minority Education Institutions (NCMEI) Act of 2004, which gives the center unfettered power to limit minority benefits to five religious communities , namely Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis.

The petition asks the center to be told to develop guidelines for minority community identification at the state level “to ensure that only religious and linguistic groups that are not socially, economically, politically dominant and numerically disadvantaged can be established and managed The educational institution of their choice.”

The petition has named three union ministries – Home Office, Law and Justice and Minority Affairs – as parties to the petition. The court agreed to hear the case in seven weeks.

In addition, the court has also heard the transfer application filed by Upadhyay for the transfer of the pending petition in the Delhi, Gauhati and Meghalaya High Courts on the issue. Senior defence lawyer CS Vaidyanathan, who appeared for Upadhyay, told the court that the petitioners of the three pending petitions did not object to the assignment. Upadhyay filed a pending petition in the Delhi High Court.

“Because the High Court is hearing the same issue, a notice has been issued. There is no objection. The transfer application is allowed accordingly.”

According to Upadhyay’s petition, Hindus accounted for only 1% in Ladakh, 2.75% in Mizoram, 2.77% in Lakshawep, 4% in Jammu and Kashmir, and 8.74% in Nagaland. Jalaya State accounts for 11.52%, Arunachal Pradesh accounts for 29%, Punjab State accounts for 38.49%, and Manipur State accounts for 41.29%.

He believes that the benefits that ethnic minorities can use to establish and operate institutions are abused by the majority community.

“The Centre’s classification of religious minorities at a pan-Indian level not only creates a wave of inequality between countries, but also encourages those who do not belong to the minority religion to convert for social, political and economic gain. ,” the petition said.

Complete News Source : Hindustan Times