Supreme Court Stays Criminal Proceedings Against Pastor For Saying Christianity Is Only True Religion

The Supreme Court today(April 10) issued notice on the plea of a Christian pastor challenging the Allahabad High Court's order, which observed that preaching that one's religion is the only true religion would attract the offence under Section 295A of the Indian Penal Code (Deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs).According to the High Court, it was wrong for any person to claim in secular India that a particular religion is the "only true religion", as doing so implies a 'disparagement' of other faiths and the same.Issuing notice to the State of Uttar Pradesh on the plea against the High Court's order, the bench comprising Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta also stayed the further proceedings against Reverend Father Vineet Vincent Pereira, the petitioner. His petition for quashing of the first information report under Section 528 of the BNSS(Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023) was dismissed by Justice Saurabh Srivastava of the High Court on March 18.According to the FIR, the applicant allegedly conducted prayer meetings where he frequently stated that Christianity is the only religion, thereby hurting the sentiments of a particular religion, i.e. Hindu. During the initial investigation, though the Investigating Officer concluded that no illegal religious conversion of marginalised sections had taken place, the police proceeded with the chargesheet regarding the allegations of criticising other religions.Senior Advocate Siddharth Dave(representing Pereira) submitted that he was being falsely implicated to harass him and that, as per the FIR, no offence under Section 295A IPC was made out. He added that the Magistrate took cognisance of the chargesheet without applying a judicial mind, acting without sufficient corroborative evidence.Justice Srivastava, while dismissing the quashing plea, had remarked that India is a land where people of all faiths and beliefs in a secular state, as defined by the Constitution of India, live together. He had observed, "It is wrong for any religion to claim that it is the only true religion as it implies a disparagement of other faiths".Case Details: VINEET VINCENT PEREIRA ALIAS FATHER VINEET VINCENT PARESH vs. STATE OF U.P.| Diary No. - 20718/2026

Supreme Court Stays Criminal Proceedings Against Pastor For Saying Christianity Is Only True Religion

Gursimran Kaur Bakshi

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