The Supreme Court on Wednesday restrained any further exhumation of bodies of tribal Christians in villages of Chhattisgarh and sought the state government’s response to allegations of forced reburials and denial of burial rights.
A Bench of Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta and N V Anjaria passed the interim order while hearing a writ petition filed under Article 32 of the Constitution by the Chhattisgarh Association for Justice and Equality and others.
“In the meantime, it is provided that no further exhumation of buried bodies shall be permitted,” the Bench said, issuing notice to the state and posting the matter for hearing after four weeks.
Appearing for the petitioners, senior advocate Colin Gonsalves submitted that tribal Christians in certain villages were being forcibly prevented from burying their deceased in village burial grounds, even though members of other communities were allowed to do so.
He told the court that the body of the mother of one of the petitioners was exhumed and reburied elsewhere without his knowledge. In another instance, the body of a petitioner’s husband was allegedly dug up by villagers from the majority community and reburied at a distant location.
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The plea contended that such actions amount to a violation of fundamental rights under Articles 14, 21 and 25 of the Constitution. It argued that denying burial in common village graveyards infringes the right to life with dignity and freedom of religion.
“This writ petition filed under Article 32 of the Constitution is in respect of tribal Christians who are forcibly being prevented from burying their deceased in the burial places within the boundaries of their villages as is done for all other communities,” the petition stated.
It sought directions restraining the state and private individuals from interfering with burials, and a declaration that all persons, irrespective of caste or religion, be permitted to bury their dead in the villages where they reside.
The petition further urged the court to direct gram panchayats across the state to demarcate burial grounds accessible to all communities and to promote common graveyards in the interest of secularism and fraternity.
Referring to a January 2025 split verdict concerning the burial of a pastor in Chhattisgarh, the plea alleged that the ruling was being cited by local authorities to deny burial rights to tribal Christians even in the absence of any dispute.
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