Fundamental Rights — UPSC Mains Model Answer

Article 25 guarantees every person freedom of conscience and the right to freely profess, practise, and propagate religion, subject to public order, morality, and health. Crucially, it also empowers the State to regulate secular activities associated with religious practice and to provide for social welfare and reform, enabling legislative intervention against practices such as untouchability.

A common misconception is that Article 26 applies to every individual. It is in fact a right vested in religious denominations or sections thereof, allowing them to establish institutions, manage their own affairs in matters of religion, and own and administer property. This distinction is administratively significant when adjudicating disputes between individual members and their parent religious bodies.

Article 27 prohibits compelling any person to pay taxes whose proceeds are specifically appropriated for the promotion or maintenance of any particular religion. This provision reinforces the constitutional principle of state neutrality, distinguishing permissible fees for secular services from unconstitutional religious levies.

Article 28 differentiates between State-run institutions, where religious instruction is entirely prohibited, and institutions receiving State aid or recognised by the State, where attendance at religious instruction must remain voluntary. This graduated framework protects minority-run aided institutions while preserving the secular character of purely State institutions.