Read Time: 09 minutes

Supreme Court has issued notice in a plea seeking appropriate Writ, Order or direction so as to strike down an earlier decision of the Bombay High Court (Petit Vs. Jeejeebhoy), whereby Parsi women who are married to non-parsi's face discrimination owing to their marriage to non-parsi's due to the said decision.

It is argued that the same treatment is not meted out to Parsi males marrying a non-Parsi and their offspring from inter-marriages.

"That given the same, the Petitioner’s vital rights under Article 14, 15, 19(1)(a) and 21 of the Constitution of India 1950 are threatened and her rights to practice and profess the religion of her birth, faith and choice after marriage with a non-Parsi even under the Special Marriage Act 1954 as a consequence of marriage of a Parsi Zoroastrian woman with a man of any other community or religion stand vitally affected. Thus, ex-communication of women is considered to be the price to be paid for intermarriage," the plea states.

The petition has been filed by a woman who married outside of her faith - to a man who was considered to be a non-parsi. Highlighting that there is no custom or practice commonly followed and in recent times, the orthodox Parsis, who control the religious and social institutions, have amended the ‘rules’ and principles in response to an uproar in the Parsi community provoked by incidents which were especially despicable and bigoted.

The woman has essentially argued that marriage is a personal choice and that the decision in Bombay High Court circumvents her fundamental rights and of Parsi women at large, who choose to marry outside the community. It is also stated that the decision under challenge outlines its faulty application to all matters, social and religious, in deciding, "who is a Parsi?".

"That ever since the decision in Re. Petit v. Jeejeebhoy, discrimination against and denial of fundamental rights of Parsis, especially Parsi women who are married to non-Parsis has been justified also on the grounds of religion by failing to distinguish between Parsis, a racial group and the Zoroastrian religion," Sanaya Dalal, the petitioner has argued.

Dalal has argued that in reality, no religious script or tenet of the Zoroastrian religion which justifies discrimination on grounds of race, ethnicity, parentage, or gender and such discrimination is not a part of the religious faith. "On the contrary, Zoroastrianism is a faith propounding universal love and the oneness of humanity," she states.

The basis of Dalal's petition rests on the fact that after her mother, who is a Parsi lady and also impleaded in the said petition, married outside her religion, she has been socially excluded from the from Parsi society and the Parsi community, and further admittedly does not have the same religious rights as someone who has not.

This has led to a situation, she says where she has been socially excluded from the community as well.

"The Petitioner No 2 asserts her right to uniformly and unequivocally continue to practice and profess the faith she was born into and also to bring up her own child within the said faith, or for the child to be accepted within the community on social non-religious matters," the plea states.

The petitioner has sought directions declaring declaring any discrimination against the Petitioners on grounds of race, ethnicity or parentage to be unconstitutional to Union of India, The Parsee Central Association Co-operative housing, Dadar Colony Gymkhana, MWCD, NCW, National Commission for minorities and Charity Commissioner, State of Maharashtra.

The plea has also sought the  to cease and desist The Parsee Central Association Co-operative housing, Dadar Colony Gymkhana from discriminating against the Petitioners on communal or racial grounds or from socially excluding them from the Parsi community and society at large,

Noteworthily, the petition also has Facebook imploded and has sought directions from the Top Court to take down posts by two groups of orthodox Parsis which are racist in nature, hateful, derogatory and vituperative against Parsis married to non- Parsis and their children, as well as all non-Parsis in general.

It is also stated that directing be issued to the above mentioned association so as to revisit the covenant under which land was given to Dadar Colony Gymkhana to ensure that there is no discrimination on grounds of race, ethnicity, gender, religion, or any other criteria upon the use and enjoyment of such land and if the same cannot be assured, to recall such a covenant and to take back possession of such public land