The Supreme Court on Monday refused to interfere with a Punjab and Haryana High Court order that had dismissed a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking to make the Karwa Chauth festival mandatory for all women, including widows, divorcees, and those in live-in relationships.

A bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh upheld the High Court’s decision, characterizing the PIL as “frivolous” and “motivated.” Justice Surya Kant observed, “These are funded by actors who don’t come forward,” alluding to the possible influence of undisclosed interests behind such petitions.

The Supreme Court noted that the petitioner, Narender Kumar Malhotra, failed to cite any legal basis requiring women to observe the festival. It further remarked that the High Court had taken a lenient approach by imposing only a nominal cost of ₹1,000.

“We do not find any ground to interfere with the impugned order. If the petitioner attempts to file any such petition directly or indirectly, we hope the High Court will take exemplary action,” the bench warned.

Initially, the petitioner’s counsel sought to withdraw the plea with liberty to approach the High Court again. However, given the frivolous nature of the petition, the apex court declined to grant such liberty and dismissed the case outright.

The original PIL, filed by Malhotra before the Punjab and Haryana High Court, had sought directions to the Union and Haryana Governments to amend the law so as to make it mandatory for all women—regardless of their marital status—to observe Karwa Chauth. The petitioner argued that widows and women in other non-traditional relationships were being denied participation in the festival due to prevailing social norms and that refusal to allow such participation should be criminalized.

The High Court dismissed the plea, holding that the issue fell within the legislative domain and was not suitable for judicial intervention. The court allowed the withdrawal of the petition but imposed a token cost on the petitioner for filing such a matter under the garb of public interest.

Case Title: Narender Kumar Malhotra vs. Union of India & Anr., SLP(C) No. 13556/2025