Supreme Court Seeks Responses from Centre, 12 States on Anti-Conversion Laws PIL

• The Supreme Court issued notices to the Centre and 12 states regarding a PIL filed by the National Council of Churches in India (NCCI) challenging anti-conversion laws.
• The NCCI, represented by senior advocate Meenakshi Arora, also requested a stay on the operation of these state laws.
• A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi sought responses within four weeks and tagged the fresh pleas with pending ones for a three-judge bench hearing.
• Solicitor General Tushar Mehta stated that similar petitions are pending, and the Centre's reply is ready.
• The PIL specifically challenges laws from states like Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Arunachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, and Himachal Pradesh.

Why It Matters: Supreme Court seeks responses from Centre and 12 states on PIL challenging anti-conversion laws.