Allahabad High Court Censures ADM for Unwarranted Inquiries on Muslim Man's Conversion The Allahabad High Court recently issued a strong reprimand against an Additional District Magistrate (ADM) for initiating repeated and unnecessary police inquiries under Uttar Pradesh’s anti-conversion law against a Muslim man who voluntarily converted to Hinduism. The court criticized the ADM for using the legal framework to probe the conversion process, despite clear evidence that the petitioner’s decision was entirely voluntary. The case centers on Anil Pandit, an assistant professor at Allahabad University, who sought to formally declare his conversion to Hinduism and faced bureaucratic resistance from the ADM. Pandit, previously known as Mohammad Ahashan, submitted his declaration of intent to convert under Section 8 of the UP Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2021, on January 12, 2022. A priest provided additional documentation to the district magistrate (DM) on February 11, 2022, confirming the upcoming conversion ritual. The actual conversion ceremony took place on March 14, 2022, at an Arya Samaj Temple. By this point, two police inquiry reports had already been submitted to the DM, both concluding that the conversion was voluntary and free from coercion. Despite these findings, the ADM, Prayagraj, ordered further police inquiries in 2023, citing a criminal case lodged against Pandit by his wife’s father, who opposed the marriage. The father alleged that Pandit had “unduly influenced” his daughter to marry him. The ADM ultimately rejected Pandit’s application for a conversion certificate on August 9, 2024, relying on a subsequent police report from July 2024 that referenced the FIR and charge-sheet against Pandit.#allahabad_high_court #additional_district_magistrate #anil_pandit #aryasamaj_temple
