Supreme Court Declines Plea to Combat Superstition and Sorcery

The Supreme Court has refused to entertain a petition seeking government intervention to eliminate superstition and sorcery. The bench emphasized that such societal issues should be managed by civil society and government branches, not through judicial directives. The petitioner subsequently withdrew the plea.

The Supreme Court on Friday declined to entertain a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) aimed at directing the Centre and states to take measures to eradicate superstition, sorcery, and similar practices. The bench, headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and comprising Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, emphasized that courts are not the answer to all societal evils.

Acknowledging the gravity of the issue, the bench stated that it is not 'judicially manageable' and highlighted that it is up to civil society and the government to tackle such problems. 'The answer is education, the spread of literacy... The more educated you become, the presumption is that more rational you become. How can a court direction for developing scientific temper help? Writs can't be an answer to all the evils in society,' said CJI Chandrachud.

The court noted that the Parliament has to singularly decide on this issue and added, 'It is also for civil society and the democratic arms of the government to take steps.' The court was hearing a PIL filed by advocate Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay, who sought directions to develop scientific temper and reform among citizens as per Article 51A of the Constitution. The bench told Upadhyay, 'You also don't become a social reformer by only moving the courts. There are several other ways to bring about changes. Courts have their own limitations, and we can't entertain everything that we think are serious issues.' As the court showed an unwillingness to entertain the petition, Upadhyay withdrew his plea.