Citizens have right to not specify religion or caste in birth certificate: Telangana High Court

The Telangana High Court recently directed the Central and State governments to provide 'no religion' and 'no caste' options in online application forms for birth certificates. [Sandepu Swaroopa v. Union of India and Ors].Justice Lalitha Kanneganti observed that citizens had every right not to follow or profess any religion under Article 25 of the Indian Constitution. Further, the order stated,"It is the bounden duty of the respondents to act in consonance with the rights guaranteed to the citizen by the Constitution of India. The system has to evolve along with the times, the changing requirements of the citizens. The constitutional court cannot remain a mute spectator to the legitimate requirement of a citizen.In the light of the above discussion, this Court is of the considered opinion that the petitioner has every right not to specify the religion or caste in the birth certificate.".The High Court also explained that Article 25 of the Constitution confers the freedom of conscience upon a citizen, which includes the right to say that they do not believe in any religion."The citizen has a right to act as per his conscience and beliefs. The State cannot compel the citizen to profess or declare that he belongs to one religion or the other. If he is compelled to do so, it is nothing but infringing his fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution of India.".The Court was hearing a writ petition by the parents (petitioners) of a child born in 2019, who had urged for directions to provide 'no religion' and 'no caste' as options while applying for a birth certificate. The petitioners stated that India was a secular country and the application forms could not compel a citizen to choose a religion against their will. They underlined that even when the population is surveyed during the Census, there is no column called ‘non-religious’ persons..The Registrar General and Census Commissioner stated that the subject of birth and death registration is under the Concurrent List of the Constitution. In that context, the Court was told that the implementation of the Registration of Births and Deaths Act was the responsibility of the state governments.Further, the Registrar informed the Court that during census enumeration, one can opt not belonging to any religion..In its verdict, the Court underlined that the apex court in Navtej Singh Johar v. Union of India had ruled that respecting another's dignity is a constitutional duty. In that case, the top court had also observed that the Constitution was a living document that could adapt to the needs of society, while emphasizing that it was the responsibility of all concerned to transform constitutional idealism into reality..The High Court proceeded to allow the writ petition and directed the governments to provide 'no religion' and 'no caste' as options in the online application form for birth certificates. .The petitioners were represented by Advocate M Venkanna..[Read Order]