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PRAYAGRAJ: Allahabad high court has directed the Uttar Pradesh govt to ensure that anyone who converts to Christianity automatically forfeits all Scheduled Caste benefits, failing which it would be construed as a “fraud on the Constitution and contrary to the ethos of reservation policies”.Justice Praveen Kumar Giri’s Nov 21 order cites Paragraph 3 of the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950, specifying that nobody other than a Hindu, Sikh or Buddhist can be deemed a member of an Scheduled Caste community.The court directed the principal secretary of the minorities welfare department to take appropriate steps to ensure that the distinction between minority and SC status was strictly enforced.The court said retention of SC status after conversion would amount to fraudulently claiming benefits since there is no caste system in Christianity.It fixed a timeline of four months for all district magistrates to act in accordance with the law to identify and prevent such occurrences.Justice Giri passed the order while dismissing a plea filed by a man accused of “mocking Hindu deities” and promoting enmity.The appellant, Jitendra Sahani, had petitioned the court to quash the charge sheet in the case on the ground that he had sought permission from the authorities to “preach the words of Jesus Christ on my land”. Justice Giri noted that Sahani mentioned his religion as “Hindu” in his affidavit, although he had converted to Christianity.It transpired that the appellant was from the SC community before his conversion.A witness in the case alleged that Sahani ridiculed the Hindu faith by claiming it offered no respect due to caste hierarchies, whereas embracing Christianity would lead to “jobs, business growth and financial benefits from the missionaries”.The court mentioned a recent Supreme Court judgment – C Selvarani Vs special secretary-cum-district collector 2024 – in which the bench held that a person ceases to belong to a particular caste after converting to Christianity.
