Supreme Court today granted the Centre three months time to hold consultations with various state governments on the issue of granting minority status to Hindus in states where they are outnumbered by other communities.

“You hold consultations with various state governments on the issue and apprise us in it,” a bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul said.

The Top Court said that the Govt was “not able to decide what it wants to do.”

It also said that all this thought should have been given before. This creates uncertainty. This can’t be answered by the Government of India. You decide what you want to do. Supreme Court on Centre’s stand on plea for minority status for Hindus.

The Centre had filed an affidavit in the issue yesterday saying that it has far-reaching ramifications and it needs more time to consult states.

The Supreme Court was hearing a plea filed by BJP leader Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay seeking its direction and order on declaring minority status for Hindus in those States in which they are outnumbered by other

The Supreme Court said that different stands didn’t help, you (Centre) must consult States where needed.

The Top Court said this after the Central government filed a fresh affidavit clarifying its stand.

After the Supreme Court asked the Centre to consult the states on the issue, the Centre said that it would follow the SC’s order and would hold consultation with states with regard to granting minority status to Hindus where they are outnumbered by other communities.

These are matters which require resolution and everything cannot be adjudicated, it said and added that it did not appreciate the Centre changing its stands in the plea seeking minority tag for Hindus in some states.

Upadhyay had filed the PIL before the Supreme Court seeking minority status for Hindus in nine states and union territories, including Punjab, where they were numerically in lower strength.

The plea filed in the year 2020 by Upadhyay, stated that as per the 2011 Census, Hindus were a minority in Lakshadweep, Mizoram, Nagaland, Meghalaya, J&K, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, and Punjab and thereby they should be given minority status in these states in accordance with the principle laid down by the Supreme Court in its 2002 TMA Pai Foundation ruling.

Seeking the dismissal of the plea, filed by Upadhyay, the Centre had said in the affidavit that “the reliefs sought by the petitioner are not in larger public or national interest”.