India, Feb. 3 -- The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to examine the constitutional validity of anti-religious conversion laws enacted by 12 States, amid concerns raised by Christian organisations that these statutes encourage vigilante violence against religious minorities.

A Bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant issued notices to the Union Government through the Ministry of Law and Justice, as well as to the governments of Himachal Pradesh, Odisha, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Arunachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Jharkhand and Rajasthan.

During the hearing, senior advocate Meenakshi Arora, appearing for the National Council of Churches in India (NCCI), argued that the structure of these l...