Exploitation, Religion, Minorities and Remedies (Articles 23–32)

Prerequisites: Fundamental Rights — overview · Right to Freedom (Articles 19–22)

The Hook: Who Decides What Is Essential to a Faith?

The Core Concept

This page covers the last four groups of Fundamental Rights.

Articles 23 and 24 — right against exploitation

• Article 23(1): traffic in human beings, begar (forced labour without payment) and other similar forms of forced labour are prohibited; contravention is an offence punishable by law.
• Article 23(2): the State may impose compulsory service for public purposes (for example, military service), but without discrimination on grounds only of religion, race, caste or class.
• In People’s Union for Democratic Rights v. Union of India (1982, the Asiad workers’ case), the Court held that paying less than the minimum wage can amount to forced labour.
• Supporting laws: Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956; Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976.
• Article 24: no child below 14 years shall be employed in any factory, mine or other hazardous employment. The law is the Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986 (renamed by its 2016 amendment).
• Articles 23 and 24 operate against private persons as well as the State.

Articles 25 to 28 — freedom of religion

Key details within Article 25:

• 25(2)(a): the State may regulate economic, financial, political or other secular activity associated with religious practice.
• 25(2)(b): the State may provide for social welfare and reform, and throw open Hindu religious institutions of a public character to all classes and sections of Hindus.
• Explanation I: wearing and carrying of kirpans is included in the profession of the Sikh religion.
• Explanation II: for 25(2)(b), “Hindus” includes persons professing the Sikh, Jaina or Buddhist religion.
• “Propagate” means to spread one’s beliefs; it does not include a right to convert another person (Rev. Stainislaus v. State of M.P., 1977).

The essential religious practices test. Since Commissioner, Hindu Religious Endowments v. Sri Lakshmindra Thirtha Swamiar of Sri Shirur Mutt (1954), courts protect under Articles 25 and 26 only those practices that are essential or integral to a religion. Critics argue that this makes judges arbiters of theology; supporters argue it prevents every claimed practice from escaping reform.

Article 28 in three tiers:

Articles 29 and 30 — cultural and educational rights

• Article 29(1): any section of citizens with a distinct language, script or culture has the right to conserve it. Note: it protects any section, not only minorities.
• Article 29(2): no citizen can be denied admission to an educational institution maintained or aided by the State on grounds only of religion, race, caste or language.
• Article 30(1): all minorities, religious or linguistic, have the right to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice.
• Article 30(1A): if the State compulsorily acquires the property of a minority educational institution, the compensation must not restrict or abrogate the right — inserted by the 44th Amendment (1978).
• Article 30(2): the State shall not discriminate against a minority-managed institution in granting aid.
• Minority status is determined State-wise, not on the all-India population (T.M.A. Pai Foundation v. State of Karnataka, 2002, eleven judges).
• In November 2024, a seven-judge bench, by 4:3, overruled S. Azeez Basha (1967) on the question of when an institution is “established” by a minority, laid down indicators for the test, and left the minority status of Aligarh Muslim University to be decided by a regular bench.

Both Articles 29 and 30 are available to citizens only.

Article 32 — the right to constitutional remedies

• 32(1): the right to move the Supreme Court by appropriate proceedings to enforce Part III is itself guaranteed.
• 32(2): the Supreme Court may issue directions, orders or writs — habeas corpus, mandamus, prohibition, quo warranto and certiorari.
• 32(3): Parliament may empower any other court to exercise these powers within its local limits (the High Courts already have them under Article 226).
• 32(4): the right shall not be suspended except as provided by the Constitution (Article 359).

Dr B.R. Ambedkar described Article 32 in the Constituent Assembly as “the very soul of the Constitution and the very heart of it”. It is part of the basic structure.

Article 32 vs Article 226: Article 32 is a Fundamental Right and enforces only Part III; Article 226 is a constitutional (not fundamental) right, enforces Fundamental Rights “and for any other purpose”, and is therefore wider in scope, though narrower in territorial reach.

graph LR
    A[Violation of a Fundamental Right] --> B{Which court?}
    B -->|Art 32| C[Supreme Court - itself a Fundamental Right]
    B -->|Art 226| D[High Court - also for legal rights]
    C --> E[Habeas corpus, Mandamus, Prohibition, Certiorari, Quo warranto]
    D --> E

Articles 33 to 35 — the closing provisions

• Article 33: Parliament may restrict or abrogate the application of Fundamental Rights to the armed forces, para-military forces, police, intelligence agencies and analogous forces.
• Article 34: restrictions on Fundamental Rights while martial law is in force in any area; Parliament may indemnify acts done in that area.
• Article 35: Parliament (not State legislatures) makes laws to give effect to certain Fundamental Rights, including Articles 16(3), 32(3), 33 and 34, and to prescribe punishment for acts declared offences in Part III (such as untouchability and forced labour).

Memory Anchors

Mnemonic for the last four groups: “Every Religion Cherishes Remedies” → Exploitation (23–24) · Religion (25–28) · Culture and education (29–30) · Remedies (32)

Article 25 vs 26 in one line: 25 is the individual’s right, subject to all of Part III; 26 is the denomination’s right, subject only to public order, morality and health.

Writs — preventive vs curative: “Prohibition Prevents; Certiorari Cures.”

One-line Mains hook: Ambedkar on Article 32 — “the very soul of the Constitution and the very heart of it”.

For Prelims

For Mains

• Dimensions: Indian secularism as principled distance; individual conscience vs group autonomy; social reform and gender justice; anti-conversion laws and the meaning of “propagate”; minority institutions and State regulation; access to justice through PIL and Article 32.
• Keywords: essential religious practices, constitutional morality, denominational autonomy, positive secularism, principled distance, locus standi, epistolary jurisdiction.
• Value-addition: Shirur Mutt (1954) on essential practices; Stainislaus (1977) on propagation; T.M.A. Pai (2002) on minority status; Ambedkar on Article 32; the Asiad workers’ case (1982) on forced labour.

Common Traps

In the News

• November 2019 — Sabarimala review: questions on essential religious practices referred to a larger bench.
• November 2024 — seven-judge bench overrules S. Azeez Basha on the test for a minority institution (Aligarh Muslim University reference).

Practice

Prelims

Mains

Quick Revision

Key Takeaways

Related Topics

• Right to Equality (Articles 14–18)
• Right to Freedom (Articles 19–22)
• Fundamental Rights — practice questions
• The Judiciary
• Communalism, Regionalism and Secularism