SC restrains exhumation of tribal Christians' bodies in Chhattisgarh villages
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court on Wednesday sought Chhattisgarh government's response on a plea that alleged exhumation and forced reburial of bodies of tribal Christians in villages there.
The court also restrained any further exhumation.
A bench of Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta and N V Anjaria passed the order while hearing a plea, which claimed that tribal Christians in Chhattisgarh were forcibly prevented from burying their deceased family members in the burial places in their villages.
The plea, filed by Chattisgarh Association for Justice and Equality and others through advocate Satya Mitra, alleged that this was a denial of their fundamental right under Article 21 of the Constitution.
Senior advocate Colin Gonsalves, appearing for the petitioners, said the body of the mother of one of the petitioners was exhumed from grave and reburied elsewhere without his knowledge.
The body of another petitioners' husband was also forcibly exhumed by villagers from the majority community and reburied at a distant place.
After the bench issued notice to the state government, Gonsalves urged the court to stay any further forcible removal of bodies from the graves.
"In the meantime, it is provided that no further exhumation of buried bodies shall be permitted," the bench said and posted the matter for hearing after four weeks.
"This writ petition filed under Article 32 of the Constitution is in respect of tribal Christians who are forcibly being prevented from burying their deceased in the burial places within the boundaries of their villages as is done for all other communities," the plea said.
It sought a direction restraining the state and individuals from interfering with the burials.
The plea also sought a declaration that all persons irrespective of caste, religion and SC/ST/OBC status are permitted to bury their deceased in the village where they live.
The plea sought directions to all gram panchayats in the state to demarcate specific areas within each village for the burial of all communities and to permit all families to bury their deceased in the village where they live.
The apex court was also requested to direct the state to promote secularism and fraternity by promoting to the extent possible common graveyards for all communities within a village.
The plea said denying burial in the common village graveyard violates the petitioners' right to freedom of religion under Article 25 of the Constitution.
"Exhumation and forced reburial of bodies at distant places, sometimes more than 50 kilometres away, constitutes cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment of the deceased and their families, which is impermissible under Articles 14 and 21," it said.
The petition alleged that instead of protecting fundamental rights, the state has permitted and even abetted the unlawful acts of communal elements who dig up corpses, obstruct burials and intimidate families on account of religion.
The plea referred to a January 2025 judgment in which the apex court gave a split verdict on the burial of a pastor whose body was lying in a mortuary in Chhattisgarh, and directed his last rites to be performed at a site meant for Christian burials in the neighbouring village.
It alleged that this judgment was being used by the Chhattisgarh Police to prevent the burial of tribal Christians in their own villages, even in places where there is no local dispute.
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Delhi: Father, son held for killing 19-year-old woman in suspected honour killing
New Delhi (PTI): The Delhi Police has arrested a man and his son for allegedly murdering his 19-year-old daughter in west Delhi's Hari Nagar area, an official said on Friday.
The case first came to light on April 1 after a PCR call was received around 2 pm, alleging that a woman had been killed by her family members and her body was being taken for last rites, he said.
The accused, identified as Mohammad Maneer (55), a vegetable vendor, and his son Meraj Ali (19), were arrested in connection with the case, the officer said.
The victim had been in a relationship with a man from her native place for the past two years, which was opposed by her father, Maneer and brother Meraj, he said.
"When the girl did not end the relationship despite objections, the family killed her," the officer said.
On April 1, the police said that when their team reached the spot, they found that the woman's body was being taken for burial.
Acting on the input, the burial process was stopped over suspicion of honour killing.
"Police intercepted the family members and took possession of the body," he said.
Police said that the man who had made the PCR told them that the woman was in love with his cousin.
During the inquiry, police also interacted with the PCR caller, who said his cousin, a friend of the deceased, had informed him about the situation and suspected foul play, prompting him to alert the police control room.
The body of the woman was subsequently shifted to the mortuary of Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital for preservation and postmortem.
Police said that both the crime team and the forensic science laboratory (FSL) team were called to inspect the scene and collect evidence.
Police said that, as per the postmortem report, the cause of death was identified as smothering, indicating that the woman was suffocated.
A preliminary inquiry also revealed that the family had initiated preparations for the last rites soon after the woman's death, raising suspicion about the circumstances.
Initial investigation pointed to the family's opposition to the woman's relationship.
"The family members of the woman saw her with the man, and she was taken back home. We got to know that she was beaten up and even locked inside the house for some days," a source said.
Further investigation into the matter is underway, police added.
