Important Legal Definitions

A constitutional doctrine formulated in the Shirur Mutt Case (1954) establishing that Article 25 and 26 protect only those religious rituals, ceremonies, and beliefs that are essential and integral to that religion, determined with reference to its foundational doctrines.

In Shayara Bano, the Supreme Court held that instantaneous triple talaq (talaq-e-biddat) was not an essential religious practice of Islam, and therefore enjoyed no constitutional protection against statutory invalidation.