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On Thursday, the Tamil Nadu government through Director General of Police moved Supreme Court challenging the Madras High Court (Madurai Bench) order directing a CBI probe into the death of a 17-year-old student amid allegations of conversion.

In the Special Leave Petition, Tamil Nadu government, through the DGP, challenged validity of the order passed by a single judge bench of the high court's Madurai Bench. The DGP has also challenged the remarks that Madras High Court has made against the State Police's thorough inaction and lack of concerted effort in chasing the probable angle of conversion that led to the girl's suicide and instead bolstering the counter narrative of the involvement of the step mother.

The Madurai Bench of Madras High Court on 31st January, 2022 had ordered the transfer of the the student death case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The Single Judge Bench of Justice G.R. Swaminathan had passed the order in a petition moved by father of the 17-year-old girl who had killed herself in Thanjavur reportedly because she was forced to undergo religious conversion. Thereafter the girl's father had sought CB-CID inquiry into the case.

In the judgment the High Court had expounded multiple circumstances to arrive at the conclusion that the "investigation is not proceeding on the right lines" and that it was the Court's duty to render posthumous justice to the child.

"Since a high ranking Hon'ble Minister himself has taken a stand, investigation cannot continue with the State Police. I therefore direct the Director, Central Bureau of Investigation, New Delhi to assign an officer to take over investigation from the State Police," Court said while allowing the petition by M Lavanya’s father plea seeking a CB-CID inquiry into his daughter’s death.

Meanwhile, the father of the girl has also filed a caveat requesting the apex court not to pass any order, without hearing him in the matter.

On 1st February, 2022 a plea in the Supreme Court was filed by Advocate Ashwini Updhyay who had sought investigation into the root-cause of death of 17-year-old Lavanya. He further sought declaration that fraudulent religious conversion and religious conversion by intimidation, threatening, deceivingly luring through gifts and monetary benefits offends Articles 14, 21, 25 of the Constitution.

Background:

A girl had committed suicide in Thanjavur last week reportedly because she was forced to undergo religious conversion. The minor girl had consumed poison on January 9 and the police had received the first information from her parents on January 15.

As per the FIR, the warden of the hostel, where Lavanya (the deceased girl) was staying, had forced her to do domestic chores on January 9. She allegedly attempted to end her life as she could not bear the cruelty.

The girl's condition had worsened on January 15 and she was shifted to the Thanjavur College Hospital. There, she gave her declaration implicating the warden and died on January 19, the police had said.

Following the recording of girl's dying statement by the Thanjavur judicial magistrate and the recording of a statement by Thirukattupalli police, the warden of her school, i.e. the missionary school was remanded.

Significantly, the girl had also recorded a video and had shared it on social media platforms where she had claimed that a woman named Rachel Mary had coerced her to convert to Christianity, which she and her parents had refused.

“...They (school) had asked my parents in my presence if they can convert me to Christianity and help her for further studies. Since I didn’t accept, they kept scolding me,” the viral video of the girl stated in Tamil language.

[Case Title – Director General of Police v Muruganantham]