Overview
- The Chhattisgarh High Court dismissed a petition on Wednesday challenging a June 12 government circular that prescribes recitation of the National Anthem, National Song, Saraswati Vandana, Gayatri Mantra and other verses in state-run school assemblies.
- Justice Amitendra Kishore Prasad found the order contains no mandatory or coercive direction and said Article 28(1) bars denominational religious instruction but does not forbid non‑sectarian moral instruction.
- Petitioners led by former Waqf Board chairman Abdul Salam Rizvi argued the circular could compel minority students to take part in practices outside their faith and violate Articles 14, 21, 25, 28, 29 and 30 of the Constitution.
- The state told the court the measure is aligned with the National Education Policy 2020 and Indian Knowledge Systems, that it has been implemented without complaints, and that no punishments are prescribed for non‑participation.
- The court dismissed the plea as premature for lack of concrete evidence of injury but granted the petitioners liberty to return with cogent material if implementation results in coercion or infringement of fundamental rights.