A panel comprising Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra has confirmed the March 3, 2023 order of the Supreme Court in this matter.
On Friday, the Supreme Court provided anticipatory bail to the Vice-Chancellor and Director of Sam Higginbottom University of Agriculture, Technology and Sciences (SHUATS) in Prayagraj. This decision pertained to a religious conversion case involving accusations of mass forced conversions to Christianity.
Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, sitting on the bench, solidified the interim protection from arrest granted in the Supreme Court’s March 2023 order.
Additionally, anticipatory bail was extended to three other officials/professors employed at the institution.
On March 3 of the previous year, the Supreme Court halted the arrest of Dr. Rajendra Bihari Lal, the Vice-Chancellor (VC) of SHUATS, and requested the State of Uttar Pradesh to respond to Lal’s anticipatory bail petition.
Following the dismissal of Lal’s anticipatory bail request by the Allahabad High Court on February 28 of the same year, Lal sought relief from the apex court.
Formerly known as Allahabad Agricultural University, SHUATS stands as one of the prominent universities in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh.
The first information report (FIR) filed in April 2022, which led to the officials of SHUATS being implicated, alleged their involvement in attempting to entice approximately 90 individuals to convert to Christianity.
According to the complaint, about 90 people congregated outside the Evangelical Church of India, Hariharganj in Fatehpur District, purportedly coerced and influenced into converting to Christianity.
During interrogation, a pastor purportedly disclosed that the conversion process had been ongoing for 34 days and was slated to conclude within 40 days. Furthermore, it was claimed that patients from the Mission Hospital were being converted with the assistance of employees.
Investigating officers identified 55 individuals allegedly involved in the conversion efforts, with 35 being identified by name and 20 remaining unidentified.
An FIR was lodged under Sections 153A, 506, 420, 467, 468 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), along with Sections 3 read with 5(1) of the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act 2021.
The Vice-Chancellor of SHUATS contended that while the FIR did not specifically name him, he asserted that he had been subject to continuous harassment and intimidation by individuals associated with the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP).
Eight months subsequent to the filing of the FIR, the Vice-Chancellor received a notice under Section 41(1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure on December 26, 2022, requiring his presence before the investigating officer (IO) on December 29, 2022.
Despite his cooperation, a search was carried out in the university premises, accompanied by significant uproar in the media aimed at tarnishing the reputation of both the VC and SHUATS, it was contended.
Subsequently, the VC sought anticipatory bail from both the Sessions Court and the Allahabad High Court, both of which were denied.
This led to the current appeal before the Supreme Court, which was eventually granted, alongside similar requests from other accused parties.
Representing the State of Uttar Pradesh, Additional Advocate General Garima Prashad made an appearance.
Senior Advocates CU Singh, Siddhartha Dave, and Mukta Gupta (retired Delhi High Court judge) represented the SHUATS officials and professors accused in the case.
