Supreme Court Rejects Review Plea, Reaffirms Converted Christians Cannot Claim Scheduled Caste Status

New Delhi, July 2026 : The Supreme Court has dismissed a review petition challenging its landmark judgment that a person who has converted to Christianity and continues to profess and practise the faith cannot claim Scheduled Caste (SC) status or seek protection under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

A Bench comprising Justices Prashant Kumar Mishra and Manmohan ruled that there was no ground to revisit its earlier decision delivered on March 24, 2026, observing that the review petition failed to establish any legal error in the original judgment.

“We have gone through the Review Petition and perused the judgment dated 24.03.2026 which has been sought to be reviewed. There is no error apparent on the record. The Review Petition is, accordingly, dismissed,” the Bench said in its order passed on July 15.

While the apex court condoned procedural defects pointed out by the court registry in the interest of justice, it rejected the petitioner’s request for an oral hearing in open court. The Bench also disposed of all pending applications connected with the matter.

The controversy stems from the Supreme Court’s March 24 verdict, which upheld an Andhra Pradesh High Court decision quashing criminal proceedings initiated under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. The complainant in the case had converted to Christianity and had been serving as a pastor for more than a decade.

In its earlier ruling, the Supreme Court held that a person professing a religion other than Hinduism, Sikhism or Buddhism cannot be recognised as a member of a Scheduled Caste under the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950. The court described the constitutional restriction as “absolute” and ruled that it leaves no scope for exceptions.

The judgment further clarified that conversion to a religion not recognised under the Presidential Order results in the immediate and complete loss of Scheduled Caste status. It observed that an individual cannot simultaneously profess Christianity while continuing to claim constitutional benefits reserved for Scheduled Castes.

Referring to the facts of the case, the Supreme Court noted that the petitioner had consistently practised Christianity and had been conducting regular Sunday prayer services as a pastor for several years. The court also observed that there was no evidence to suggest that the individual had reconverted to his original faith or had been accepted back into the Madiga community, to which he originally belonged.

The Bench concluded that these undisputed facts clearly established the petitioner’s religious identity, making him ineligible to claim Scheduled Caste status or invoke the protective provisions of the SC/ST Act.

The Andhra Pradesh High Court had earlier reached a similar conclusion, holding that a person who had embraced Christianity and was functioning as a pastor could not avail the legal protections reserved for Scheduled Castes under the SC/ST Act, as the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950 excludes persons professing religions other than those specifically recognised.

With the dismissal of the review petition, the Supreme Court has reaffirmed its interpretation of the constitutional framework governing Scheduled Caste status, reinforcing that eligibility for such benefits remains subject to the religious criteria laid down under the Presidential Order.

(The content of this article is sourced from a news agency and has not been edited by the Mavericknews30 team.)