Gujarat Freedom Of Religion Act: Supreme Court issues notice in plea seeking restoration of Section 5

The Supreme Court today issued notice in a petition challenging the Gujarat High Court's order staying Section 5 of the Gujarat Freedom of Religion Act, which mandated permission of District Magistrates for religious conversion for marriage (State of Gujarat v. Jamiat Ulama E-Hind Gujarat & Ors)..A Bench of Justices Abdul Nazeer and Krishna Murari was hearing an appeal by the State government claiming that with Section 5 of the Act being stayed, even cases where inter-religious marriages have been solemnised by a person without force, allurement, or fraudulent means have been effected..Section 5 of the Act reads:"5: Prior Permission from District Magistrate with respect to conversion1) Whoever converts any person from one religion to another either by performing any ceremony by himself for such conversion as a religious Priest or takes part directly or indirectly in such ceremony shall take Prior Permission for such proposed conversion from the District Magistrate concerned by applying in such form as may be prescribed by rules;2. The person who is converted shall send an intimation to the District Magistrate of the District concerned in which the ceremony has taken Place of the fact of such conversion within such period and in such form as may be prescribed by rules.3. Whoever fails, without sufficient cause, to comply with the provisions of sub-sections (1) and (2) shall be punished with imprisonment for a term, Which may extend to one year or with fine which may extend to rupees one thousand or with both".It was contended that as per the judgement passed in Rev Stainislaus v. State of Madhya Pradesh, there is no fundamental right to convert a person to another religion. Therefore, the provision requiring permission from the District Magistrate for converting a person's religion as provided under Section 5 of the Act cannot be said to be affecting fundamental rights in any manner.The High Court expressed opinions related to marriage even as Section 5 has nothing to do with that aspect, the State submitted. The provision rather deals with the procedure to be followed in genuine cases of conversion from one religion to another..The State claimed that the Section is an enabling provision that will give people the freedom to convert to any other religion on their own volition, and the exercise of taking prior permission "obviates forcible conversion" and protects the freedom of conversion..It is stated that the Gujarat Freedom of Religion Act has been in operation for 18 years and thus, a challenge to the said provision at such a belated stage ought to have been taken under consideration before staying the operation of Section 5.The stay on Section 5 has rendered the provision redundant, as a result of which "grave prejudice an irreparable harm" is being caused to the society, the State has claimed..On August 19 last year, the High Court had passed an interim order staying the operation of Sections 3, 4, 4A to 4C, 5, 6, 6A of the 2003 Act as amended by the Gujarat Freedom of Religion (Amendment) Act, 2021..In an order passed on August 26, the Bench refused to modify its earlier order, even as Advocate General Kamal Trivedi argued that Section 5 of the Act was unrelated to marriage and only related to permission for conversion.Then Chief Justice Vikram Nath went on to clarify that the stay on Section 5 was only in relation to permission for where there is conversion along with marriage and that the stay would not fall in the way of permission for conversion for other reasons..Gujarat High Court refuses to modify stay on provisions of Gujarat Freedom of Religion (Amendment) Act, 2021