Articles 25-28 in Part III (Fundamental Rights) of the Constitution guarantee the right to freedom of religion, with the Sabarimala case focusing on the interplay between Articles 25 and 26. | Photo credit: PTI
AND A nine-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court (SC), headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, is currently hearing petitions regarding discrimination against women at religious places and examining the propriety and wider constitutional implications of its 2018 decision in Indian Young Lawyers’ Association v State of Kerala on the entry of women into the Sabarimala temple in Kerala.
On 28 September 2018, a five-judge bench of the Supreme Court, by a 4:1 majority, struck down the age restriction and declared Rule 3(b) of the Kerala Hindu Places of Public Worship (Permission of Entry) Rules, 1965 – which allowed women’s “places of worship” to be excluded from public worship as a religion based on custom. unconstitutional. Excluding women of “menstrual age” violated guarantees of equality, non-discrimination and dignity, the Supreme Court ruled. It further ruled that the devotees of Lord Ayyappa do not constitute a separate “religious denomination” and that the said custom cannot be qualified as an “Essential Religious Practice” (ERP).
Published – 16 Apr 2026 23:13 IST
