Evolving a New Religious Freedom Jurisprudence: A Step Towards Ensuring Equality for Women

Abstract

India is a country of religious pluralism, and cultural diversity wherein religion is one of the important social institutions. Freedom of religion in India is guaranteed as a fundamental right which comprises ‘freedom to freely profess, practice and propagate religion’ within the Constitutional boundary. The Indian constitution fosters equality to all and has a broader interpretative connotation. Often, the judiciary is posed with the delicate task of settling the sensitive disputes relating to religion. The court's intervention into such practices may lead to a conflict of existing values backed by the religion or society with newly introduced values by the court. Recently, the Supreme Court in the Sabarimala Temple Entry case declared the practice of prohibiting women in their menstruating age from entering the temples as unconstitutional. The article substantiates that the case paves the way for ensuring equality for women in every sphere, including religion. It critically appraises the existing jurisprudence of religious freedom and argues the need to establish a much coherent jurisprudence based on constitutional principles. The article correlates moral, social, and religious intricacies in determining the constitutional validity of religious practices and tries to substantiate it based on developing jurisprudence of constitutional morality.