SC to hear Tamil Nadu's plea against CBI probe into death of 17-year-old girl on Monday

The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on Monday a plea by the Tamil Nadu government against the Madras High Court's order for the CBI probe into suicide of a 17-year-old student, allegedly due to pressure for religious conversion.

A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Bela M Trivedi would take up on February 14 the special leave petition filed by the state through the DGP.

The state government challenged the validity of orders passed by a single-judge bench of the Madurai bench of the High Court, which also made stinging remarks against the Tamil Nadu government and Thanjavur district police over their attempts to “derail the investigation.” The petition filed by advocate Joseph Aristotle questioned the order, against the police and the Education Minister who ruled out conversion angle in the case.

Also Read | Tamil Nadu schoolgirl dies by suicide; alleges attempted forced conversion in video 'confession'

The father of the deceased also filed a caveat urging the top court not to pass any order in the matter without granting him a hearing.

The 17-year-old girl, studying at the Sacred Heart Higher Secondary School in Michaelpatti, consumed poison on January 9 and died on January 19 at a hospital. Her video alleging the hostel warden had attempted to convert her to Christianity, had gone viral on social media.

The girl’s father filed the petition on January 21 seeking a CB-CID probe but he, subsequently, sought a probe by CBI.

Her case was also raised by BJP leader and advocate Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay in a PIL in the top court, claiming the Centre and States have failed to control the menace of deceitful religious conversion, though it is their duty under Articles 14, 21, 25 of the Constitution. His PIL sought a direction to the Centre and States to control fraudulent religious conversion and those carried out by intimidation, threat, deceit, and through gifts and monetary benefits.

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