State Of Karnataka & Anr vs Pastor P. Raju

The Supreme Court held that the initiation of criminal proceedings under Section 153-B IPC against the respondent was invalid due to the lack of prior sanction as mandated by Section 196(1-A) Cr.P.C. The Court emphasized that without such sanction, the proceedings are illegal and without jurisdiction. Consequently, the Karnataka High Court's order quashing the proceedings was upheld, reinforcing the necessity of obtaining prior approval for prosecution in cases involving religious conversion allegations.