Hinduism Way Of Life, Not Mandatory To Go To Temple To Prove Belief: SC
New Delhi : Observing that Hinduism is a way of life, the Supreme Court on Wednesday said that it is not necessary for a Hindu to compulsorily go to a temple or perform a ritual to remain a Hindu, even lighting a lamp inside the house is enough to prove one’s faith. The observation by the nine-judge constitutional bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant came while hearing petitions regarding discrimination against women at religious places, including the Sabarimala temple in Kerala, and the scope of religious freedom enjoyed by many faiths, including Dawoodi Bohras.
Justices BV Nagarathna, MM Sundresh, Ahsanuddin Amanullah, Aravind Kumar, Augustine George Masih, Prasanna B Varale, R Mahadevan and Joymalya Bagchi are also part of the nine-judge bench.
In the hearing, which started on the 15th day of the hearing, the lawyer of one of the interveners, Dr. G Mohan Gopal stated that demands for social justice have emerged from religious communities.
“Hinduism was defined as a religious category. Later in 1966, it was recognized that a Hindu is someone who accepts the Vedas as the highest authority on matters of religion and philosophy. They never asked me. None of us said that.”
“Now I have great respect for the Vedas and great admiration for them. But is it a fact that today every person classified as a Hindu accepts the Vedas as the supreme authority on all spiritual and philosophical matters?” he asked.
Responding to his application, Justice Nagarathna said, “This is why Hinduism is called a way of life. It is not necessary for a Hindu to necessarily go to a temple or perform a ritual to remain a Hindu.”
He said there was no need for ritualism and that no one could stand in the way of people of faith.
The CJI further said, “Even lighting a lamp in one’s hut is enough to prove one’s religion.”
The trial continues.
The apex court had earlier observed that if individuals started questioning every religious practice or religious issue before a constitutional court, hundreds of petitions would be filed and hence every religion would “collapse”.
The five-judge Constitution bench, in a 4-1 majority verdict in September 2018, had lifted the ban preventing women between the ages of 10 and 50 from entering the Sabarimala Ayyappa temple and ruled that centuries-old Hindu religious practices were illegal and unconstitutional.
