The Kerala High Court recently ruled that a person’s request to change their religion on academic records cannot be denied due to the absence of legal provisions for such changes [Lohith S & Anr v State of Kerala & Anr].
Justice VG Arun stated that necessary corrections must be made in the records after a change of religion.
“Even if there is no provision enabling the change of religion in school certificates, this does not justify binding a person to a single religion merely by birth. The freedom to practice and profess any religion of one’s choice is guaranteed by Article 25(1) of the Constitution. If a person embraces another religion by exercising this freedom, necessary corrections must be made in their records,” the Court said.
The petitioners, who were born Hindu and converted to Christianity in May 2017, sought to amend their school certificates to reflect their new religion. Their request was denied by the Controller of Examinations, citing the lack of specific provisions for such changes.
Challenging this decision, the petitioners argued that even without a specific provision, the High Court has ample power under Article 226 of the Constitution of India. The Government Pleader opposed the plea, relying on certain Government Orders.
The Court rejected the government’s opposition, citing a previous ruling in a similar case. “As rightly observed in Ext.P10 judgment, refusal to carry out the correction will adversely impact the future of the applicants. Moreover, such a rigid approach goes against the Constitutional guarantee,” it said.
The Court set aside the Controller of Examination’s order and directed the authority to amend the petitioners’ school certificates within a month.
The petitioners were represented by advocate T.K. Ananda Krishnan. Senior Government Pleader Deepa Narayanan appeared for the State.
