Article 27 of the Constitution

You pay taxes every year. Could the State use that money to build a temple, a mosque or a church? Article 27 says it cannot force you to pay tax for that purpose. It protects every taxpayer, whatever their faith. But what counts as “promoting a religion”? And how did a mutt in Udupi and a pilgrim subsidy end up in the same story?

1What Does Article 27 Say?

• No person can be compelled to pay any tax whose proceeds are specifically spent on promoting or maintaining a religion.
• The key words are compelled and specifically appropriated.
• It covers any particular religion or religious denomination. It is not only about one faith.
• It protects all taxpayers, not only the members of one religion.
• It sits with Articles 25, 26 and 28 in the group of religious freedoms.
• Its aim is a State that stays neutral in how it raises money.

2What Is the Difference Between a Tax and a Fee?

• A tax is a compulsory payment. It is not linked to any special service in return.
• A fee is a payment for a specific service the payer gets.
• Article 27 is about taxes. A fee for a real service is a different matter.
• The test looks at what the money does, not at what the levy is called.
• A levy cannot escape the rule just by being named a “fee”.

3What Happened in the Shirur Mutt Case?

• In 1951, Madras passed a law to control Hindu religious and charitable endowments.
• Section 76 let the State charge an annual contribution on religious institutions. The limit was 5 per cent of their income.
• The head of the Shirur Mutt at Udupi challenged it. He said the contribution was really a tax, and the State had no power to levy it.
• In 1954, a seven-judge bench decided Commissioner, Hindu Religious Endowments, Madras v. Sri Lakshmindra Thirtha Swamiar of Sri Shirur Mutt.
• The Court held that the contribution was a tax and not a fee. It did not pay for a specific service to the institution.
• The State therefore had no power to impose it in that form, and section 76(1) failed.
• The Court also explained Article 27. What it bars is the specific use of tax money to promote or maintain a religion.
• The same case gave us the test for a religious denomination under Article 26.

4What Happened in the Haj Subsidy Case?

• For years, the Government of India gave an air fare subsidy to Haj pilgrims.
• A petitioner, Prafull Goradia, argued that it broke Article 27.
• On 28 January 2011, the Supreme Court dismissed the challenge to the Haj Committee Act, 2002.
• It did not accept that the subsidy violated Articles 14, 15 or 27.
• In 2012, the Court told the Centre to reduce the subsidy step by step and end it within ten years.
• The Centre ended the Haj subsidy in January 2018, four years before that deadline.

5What Can the State Still Do?

• It can spend on general welfare that helps all faiths equally.
• It can give aid to a hospital or school run by a religious trust, if the aim is a genuine secular purpose.
• It can charge fees for secular services, such as an audit of trust accounts.
• What it cannot do is force a taxpayer to fund the promotion of one religion.

6How Do Articles 25 to 28 Fit Together?

• Article 25: freedom of conscience, and the right to profess, practise and propagate religion.
• Article 26: the right of religious denominations to manage their own affairs.
• Article 27: no one is forced to pay tax for the promotion of a religion.
• Article 28: limits on religious instruction in educational institutions funded by the State.
• Together they keep the State neutral. It neither forces nor funds one faith.

7What Should You Remember for Exams?

Must Know

• Article 27 bars compelling anyone to pay a tax whose proceeds go to promoting or maintaining a particular religion.

Good to Know

• It covers taxes, not fees for services.
• Shirur Mutt (1954) held the 5% contribution to be a tax, not a fee.
• It is part of the Articles 25 to 28 group.

Great to Know

• Not every levy on a religious body is barred (Trap).
• A “fee” label does not decide the matter (Trap).
• Welfare aid to all faiths is allowed (Trap).