PRAYAGRAJ, Sept. 24 -- Conversion to another religion does not, by itself, automatically end a person's Scheduled Tribe (ST) status, the Allahabad High Court has observed, while holding that continued tribal status must be determined from facts including customary practices, social organisation and acceptance by the tribal community.

Justice Arun Kumar made the observations while relying on the Supreme Court's 2026 judgment in Chintad Anand vs State of Andhra Pradesh and Others, which held that ST status depends on whether a claimant continues to possess tribal identity.

The court was hearing petitions filed by Ninhki alias Naimunisha, who claimed to belong to the Bhuiya ST community, against three orders of the deputy collector, Sonbha...