Home
Indian polity
POLITY-UPSC

ARTICLE 27 – Freedom from Taxation for Promotion of Religion

Amith

🟥 ARTICLE 27 – Freedom from Taxation for Promotion of Religion

🔹What is Article 27?

It says:

❌ "No person shall be forced to pay any tax if that tax is being used for promoting or maintaining any particular religion."

🔸 Easy Explanation:

  • The government cannot collect taxes from citizens to support or promote a specific religion like Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, etc.

  • Why? Because India is a secular country – the State must treat all religions equally.

  • But if the government wants to spend on all religions equally, then it is allowed.

🟩 Examples:

Allowed (✅) Not Allowed (❌)
Building public facilities for all religions Building only temples using public tax money
Spending on interfaith programs Giving govt funds to promote just one religion
Providing safety for pilgrims of all religions Charging tax to build a church or mosque only

🧾 Tax vs Fee (very important for UPSC):

Tax Fee
Collected for general public use Collected for specific services
❌ Can’t be used for promoting a religion ✅ Can be used for secular services related to religion
Prohibited under Article 27 Allowed under Article 27

🔹 So, what kind of fees are allowed?

  1. ✅ Fee from pilgrims – for safety, sanitation, crowd control
    Example: Tirupati or Vaishno Devi pilgrimage management

  2. ✅ Fee from religious endowments – for inspection, regulation
    Example: Fees paid to government bodies for regulating temple trust accounts, audits, etc.

📝 Why fees are allowed?
Because the purpose is not religious, but administrative or regulatory.

✴️ Constitutional Importance

  • Article 27 is meant to protect the secular fabric of India.

  • It ensures that no religion gets financial favoritism from the State.

  • It also ensures that people of one religion aren’t forced to fund another through taxes.

✅ UPSC Key Pointers

Topic Detail
Article 27
Keyword "No tax for promotion of any particular religion"
Tax ❌ Not allowed for religious promotion
Fee ✅ Allowed for secular regulation or services
Secular State Article 27 helps ensure India remains secular
Related Articles Article 25–28 deal with religious freedom

🔖 PYQ-Type MCQ (for practice):

Q. Under Article 27, which of the following is prohibited?
A) Levying a fee on pilgrims for security
B) Spending public tax money to maintain only temples
C) Imposing regulation fees on religious endowments
D) Using public funds for all religious festivals equally

Answer: ✅ B (Because only promoting one religion with tax money is banned)

📌 Summary Chart

What Article 27 says Tax cannot be used to promote or maintain any one religion
Who is protected? All citizens – no one can be forced to pay tax for religion
Tax ❌ Can’t be used for promoting religion
Fee ✅ Can be charged for services (like management, safety, etc.)
Reason India is a secular State – no favoritism in religion
Extra UPSC Tip Know difference between tax and fee — UPSC loves this type of question

Post a Comment