The Supreme Court on Monday asked the Rajasthan government to respond to a petition questioning the constitutional validity of the Rajasthan Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2025. The challenge has been filed by the Jaipur Catholic Welfare Society.
A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta issued notice to the state and other respondents, directing them to file their replies within four weeks. The matter will be heard after the responses are received.
Senior advocate Rajeev Dhavan, arguing for the petitioner, said the challenge focuses on “legislative competence” and claims the statute goes beyond constitutional limits. When the bench noted that similar petitions were already pending before the court, Dhavan said the present plea raises “an entirely different question”.
Justice Nath said the court would first hear all sides before examining the issues raised. The petition has now been tagged with other matters involving similar challenges.
Earlier, on November 3, the Supreme Court had agreed to hear two separate petitions assailing various provisions of Rajasthan’s anti-conversion law, which came into force in 2025 after being passed by the state Assembly in September. Notices were issued to the state government at that stage as well.
In September, another bench of the apex court had also sought responses from multiple states on pleas seeking a stay on their anti-conversion laws. The court said it would examine requests for interim stay only after receiving replies.
The broader batch of cases involves challenges to similar statutes enacted by Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana, Jharkhand, and Karnataka.
