Right to Freedom of Religion

Articles 25 to 28 together protect the Right to Freedom of Religion, one of the

clearest expressions of India's character as a secular state -- a state that does not have an

official religion of its own and treats all religions with equal respect, rather than favouring or

disfavouring any one of them. This right operates on two related levels: it protects an individual's

freedom to hold and practise their own faith (Articles 25 and 26), and it protects the equal

standing of every religion by keeping the state itself neutral among them (Articles 27 and 28).

The two sub-topics that follow look at these two dimensions in turn: the personal freedom of faith …