I face religious discrimination at my Mangalore workplace; does Article 25 protect me?

Detailed Legal Analysis

Article 25 guarantees the freedom of conscience and the right to profess, practise and propagate religion, subject to public order, morality and health. Religious discrimination by the state is also barred by Article 15(1), and by private employers under the Equal Remuneration Act and the Industrial Employment rules.

File a writ petition under Article 226 in the Karnataka High Court if the employer is the state, or a complaint with the labour commissioner and the NHRC for a private employer. The court will examine whether the restriction on religious practice was reasonable and whether it targeted a particular faith.

Karnataka Rent Control Act 1999 on anti-conversion or religious practice must satisfy the Article 25 restrictions, failing which it is void. Preserve the discriminatory order, the messages and the witness statements from Mangalore.

The court can direct the employer to cease the discrimination and to pay compensation for the violation.