Freedom of religion, cultural and educational rights, and constitutional remedies
India is a secular state: Articles 25 to 28 protect faith, 29 and 30 protect minorities, and Article 32 lets a person go to the Supreme Court to enforce rights.
What a secular state means
The Preamble promises liberty of belief, faith and worship. Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Christians and many other communities live together in India. So the Constitution makes India a secular state: the State has no religion of its own. Every person may follow any faith in his or her own way. But this must not disturb the faith and worship of others. Foreigners in India enjoy this freedom too.
Right to freedom of religion (Articles 25 to 28)
- Freedom of conscience, and the right to profess, practise and propagate religion. Profess means to declare your faith; propagate means to spread it peacefully.
- No one may convert another person by force or allurement (a bribe or a tempting offer).
- Cruel practices in the name of religion are not allowed, such as human sacrifice, sati, or forcing a widow into a life of hardship. The State may limit this freedom for public order, morality and health, and may regulate the economic or political side of religious activity.
- Every religious group may manage its own religious affairs, set up institutions for religious and charitable work, and own and run property under the law.
- No one can be forced to pay a tax whose money is used to promote one particular religion.
- No religious instruction in an educational institution wholly run on State funds. In institutions recognised or aided by the State, no student can be made to attend religious instruction or worship without consent; for a minor, the guardian must agree.
Cultural and educational rights (Articles 29 and 30)
- Democracy is majority rule, so these rights make sure minorities do not feel neglected.
- Any group with a distinct language, script or culture has the right to conserve it.
- No citizen can be refused admission to a State-run or State-aided institution only because of religion, race, caste or language.
- All minorities, religious or linguistic, may set up and run educational institutions of their choice. The State may not discriminate against them when giving grants.
- A minority can exist at the state level too. Sikhs are a majority in Punjab but a minority in Delhi or Rajasthan.
Right to constitutional remedies (Article 32)
A right is only as strong as the way to protect it. Under Article 32, a person whose fundamental right is violated can go directly to the Supreme Court. The Court can issue directions, orders or writs to enforce the right. A writ is a formal written order of a court. High Courts can issue writs too, under Article 226. Because this right guards all the others, Dr B. R. Ambedkar called it the heart and soul of the Constitution. Your NIOS lesson does not name the writs, but the five kinds are useful to know.
The five writs
| Writ | Meaning of the word | When it is used |
|---|---|---|
| Habeas corpus | You may have the body | Orders that a detained person be brought before the court, which frees the person if the detention is unlawful |
| Mandamus | We command | Orders a public official or body to do a duty it is failing to do |
| Prohibition | To forbid | Stops a lower court from going beyond its powers in a case |
| Certiorari | To be informed | Moves a case from a lower court, or cancels its order, when it acted beyond its powers |
| Quo warranto | By what authority? | Asks a person holding a public office to show his or her right to hold it |
Many schools and colleges in India are run by religious and language minorities under Article 30. If police hold a person without producing him or her before a magistrate, the family can file a habeas corpus petition in the High Court.
2 marks: “India has no religion of its own. Give two ways in which the right to freedom of religion helps people of all faiths live together.” 1. Every person may profess, practise and peacefully propagate any faith, so no one can be forced into another religion. 2. The State favours no faith: no tax to promote one religion and no religious instruction in fully State-funded institutions. This secures the Preamble's liberty of belief, faith and worship.
2 marks: “How does the right to constitutional remedies protect all the other fundamental rights?” It protects all the other rights. Under Article 32 a person can go directly to the Supreme Court, which can issue writs. Without it, the other rights would only be promises.
3 marks: “Describe the cultural and educational rights given by the Constitution.” Article 29: any group with a distinct language, script or culture may conserve it; no one refused admission to State-run or aided institutions only on grounds of religion, race, caste or language. Article 30: minorities may set up and run educational institutions of their choice, and the State may not discriminate against them in grants.
25 to 28 faith, 29 and 30 minorities, 32 courts. Five writs: Have Many People Called Quickly (Habeas corpus, Mandamus, Prohibition, Certiorari, Quo warranto).