The Supreme Court's ruling on Islamic (sharia) courts is a move in the right direction. Religious courts have no legal binding in India though a lot of such courts became very active recently, of particular concern being the khap panchayats that sealed the fate of many people in some of the North Indian states. Among the many bizarre judgements delivered by the kangaroo courts is one in which a young woman was 'legally' raped by almost a whole village in West Bengal merely because the man she chose to marry belonged to a different religion. When the Constitution of India allowed every citizen to follow his/her religion and its practices, it was not handing over the law on a platter to the priests. Religions cannot be parallel judiciaries. They can guide and help believers to lead good lives. In that process of guidance and counselling, if both the aggrieved parties arrive at a consensus the judiciary of the country won't generally interfere unless...
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