Supreme Court Agrees to Examine Petition to Ban FGM

Nov 29, 2025 - The Supreme Court has agreed to examine a petition seeking to ban the practice of female genital mutilation (FGM) and issued notices to the Centre and the Ministry of Law and Justice for their response.

A Bench of Justices BV Nagarathna and R Mahadevan was on Saturday (November 29) listening to the petition filed by NGO Chetna Welfare Society to put a ban on FGM which it said prevails among "Muslims and in particular the Dawoodi Bohra community", contending that it is "not an essential part of Islam and violates the rights of children".

The plea said, “The Dawoodi Bohras are a religious denomination within Shia Islam. The Dawoodi Bohras are the most well-known Muslim community in India to practice FGC, known as khatna in the community - a ritual that many Islamic scholars around the world do not endorse.”

The NGO's petition described FGM as "a serious health concern as it can cause infections, problems relating to childbirth and other severe physical impairments". It added that the practice is already banned in several countries including the US, UK, Australia and many African countries. 

Advocate Shashi Kiran and lawyer Sadhana Sandhu, who appeared for the NGO, told the Court that WHO, UN agencies and human rights bodies have long been pushing the States for a ban on FGM as medical evidence showed it led to short-term and long-term physical and psychological harms.

With Media Inputs

#SupremeCourt #FGM #ChildRights #HumanRights #DawoodiBohra #IndiaNews #LegalUpdates #WomenSafety #UNStandards #WHOGuidelines #LawAndJustice #ConstitutionBench  #National News #RajasthanNews #UdaipurTimes #UdaipurTimesNews #UdaipurTimesOfficial #UdaipurNews #UdaipurUpdates